To Tame a Viking
by NocturnalUnicorn
Summary: A young photographer named Tino meets a handsome viking named Berwald, who has been sealed away by a magic spell for centuries. Stranger yet, Berwald seems to think Tino is his wife! And what are these mysterious dreams Tino is having? SuFin M for LC
1. Prologue

_Prologue_

_The young, violet eyed man stood tied against the trunk of a tree, the coarse fibers of the rope rubbing painfully against his bare flesh. He was naked, defeated, and humiliated, and worst of all, his entire village stood around him, staring. Their eyes were as wide as the full moon, yet they seemed soulless, empty, disbelieving._

_A tall brunet unsheathed his puukko and pressed it against the smaller man's naked chest. It was sharp, and it cut into his skin slightly, causing a river of red blood to dribble down. The violet eyed man groaned and glared up at his captor, defeated, but not willing to go down like a coward. _

_The brunet frowned at his prisoner, and growled out a simple question._

"_Did you love him?" the puukko was pressed slightly harder into the prisoner's chest, causing him to heave out a pained sigh before responding._

"_Yes," he gasped._

"_You loved him, you loved the traitor?" The puukko was pushed in further, lightly touching a rib. The violet eyed man yelped in pain and looked down, his eyes and mouth agape. The incision, he could see it. _

_The brunet angled the sharp blade away from the bone and in the direction of the heart. _

"_For helping him and housing him, I, the de-facto leader of the village, officially declare you a traitor as well." and with a final stab and an ear shattering yelp, the prisoner was executed. _

((A/N: I know, what a violent way to begin a fanfic. Sorry if you are squeamish, the first real chapter will be far less violent, I promise.

As the ancient Finns (the villagers) had no written language, I am taking my liberties with how their society actually operated, so forgive me if it isn't too accurate. Also, a puukko is a kind of traditional Finnish knife.))


	2. The Seal is Broken

Tino Väinämöinen trudged up the steps to the front porch, a large, black bag in one hand. He stepped carefully; it had snowed that night in Louisville, Kentucky, and the entire city was coated with the slippery, white crystals.

Once on the porch itself, Tino found himself standing in front of the green door to a small-ish brick house; a house he knew well. Cheerfully, he rapped at its wooden surface; the sound echoing through the desolate, wintry, mourning. Not even a minute later, the door swung open with a blast of hot air, revealing Tino's good friend Lukas Bondevik.

The Norwegian-American stared blankly, as usual, but his lips were upturned into a slight smile, revealing that he was indeed happy to see Tino.

"I suppose you are here to take photos of the artifacts?" Lukas asked dryly.

"Well, yeah. You said that you needed some good quality photographs of them. I'm a photographer, after all!" Tino replied, the soft lilt of his Finnish accent washing over his words.

"Then come in." Lukas said, gesturing stiffly with a slim arm.

The warmth of his friend's house was the perfect escape from the cold, and it warmed Tino's reddened cheeks. He could feel the snowflakes that had dusted his platinum blond hair melt into droplets of water. The young photographer smiled as he took in the familiar surroundings. Lukas' house was decorated nicely, but was still rather minimalistic. He had rustic, wooden furniture. Black and white photographs of the Norwegian countryside hung on the light brown walls. On a pine coffee table in the living room sat various artifacts. Tino immediately knew that these were to be the subjects of his photography.

Lukas took a seat in a slightly worn leather arm chair, his favorite, in front of the table. He gestured to the matching couch beside it.

"Sit."

Tino sat down on the couch and placed his camera bag at his feet. He turned his attention to Lukas, who was running a hand through his white blond hair and getting ready to speak.

"These are Finnish artifacts. A Finnish archeological company dug them up off of Lake Paijanne's southern shore. Got them for a fair price, they found hundreds of little artifacts like this."

Tino smiled. Typical Lukas. Even though he worked as a freelance writer, the other young man had plenty of money; his late parents had left it in to him in their will, after all. Of course, Lukas spent most of the money on the necessities, such as food and private schooling for his teenage half brother, but still had some left over to support what was perhaps his strangest hobby: collecting ancient Nordic artifacts.

"It's been a while since you bought anything Finnish. What do you want me to take a picture of first?" Tino said. His friend picked up a tiny wooden amulet carved in the shape of a bear.

"Start with this one, if you don't mind."

As Tino set up his camera and adjusted the lighting, one of the artifacts caught his eye. It was made of white bone, and carved into the shape of a bound man. It was small and insignificant looking, only roughly the size of Tino's thumb, but he still felt himself become inexplicably drawn to it.

"Um, Lukas, what's that?" He asked, lifting the sculpture off of the table.

Tino's companion answered quickly: "I read about these things a while back. Apparently, magic users in ancient Finland used these to seal people away for years on end. Even as a magic user myself, I can't for the life of me figure out how someone would be capable of casting a spell like that. It's probably impossible, just a myth, ya know."

Tino turned the artifact over in his hand. It felt strangely warm. "Well, Lukas, wouldn't it be awful to be the guy stuck in there? I mean, there definitely isn't a person in there, but could you imagine?"

"Tino, don't think too hard."

Suddenly, the little bound man began to grow hot in Tino's hand. Literally hot. So hot it burned his skin.

"Perkele!" Tino yelped, dropping the artifact to the hard wood floor.

"What is it?" Lukas said in a rather annoyed manner.

"Th-that thing just got really hot. It BURNED my HAND."

"Don't over react, Tino. You're imagining things."

"I'm serious!"

"Calm down, let me see it."

Suddenly, like blinding, silent lightning, a bright light flashed across the vision of both young men. When it cleared, the little bound man of bone had cracked in half. Next to it was something, no, someone, far more unexpected and surprising.

He was a giant of a man, with broad shoulders and long legs. He lay on the floor, clothed in a blue tunic and not much else. His facial features were sharp and his eyes were cold, blue-green and steely. At one point, he may have had a beard, but that appeared to be roughly shaved off; his face was dotted with fresh red scabs. His ash blond hair was treated in a similar manner. It was cut roughly; longer in some places than others. Thankfully, however, the man didn't seem to have any weapons.

Tino gasped. Even though he was unarmed, this mysterious stranger still seemed dangerous.

The man struggled to his bare feet, towering over both Nikolas and Tino. He blinked his sea blue eyes and squinted; obviously, he wasn't used to electric lights, or anything else in the house for that matter. He looked around, his expression unreadable. His eyes, however, were full of what might have been confusion and bewilderment. He parted his chapped lips and let out a deep, bellowing cry to the sky, his voice shaking the house.

Lukas was in shock, speechless, frozen.

Tino screamed. It came out far more girly and high pitched than he would have liked. The giant before him took notice and fell to his knees before him, gripping his small hand in his own large, rough ones. His blue eyes were wide, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. His face was still as sharp and hostile looking as ever.

Again, Tino screamed. "What the hell are you doing?" The man in front of him looked genuinely hurt, but continued to hold Tino's hand, mumbling something in what could have been Old Norse.

Never in his life had Tino been so confused or frightened.

((A/N: Oooh, cliff hanger! Anyways, here are a few notes:

*Perkele is a Finnish swear word. It's kind of like "damn it".

*This story takes place in a modern fantasy type setting, so people using magic like Norway says he can are not considered unusual.

*If you haven't figured it out, Lukas Bondevik is Norway.

*Old Norse was the language spoken by the Vikings.

*The story takes place in Louisville, KY. I know it's a derpy setting, but I used to live there. I wanted to write about what I know so the fanfic's setting would seem convincing.))


	3. The Viking Revealed

((I would like to give a very special thank you to Golden_Archer, who offered to help me with the archeological details of this story. Thanks to this fellow writer's experience in archeology, I was able to determine that archeologists sometimes sell surplus items found and that I needed to be more specific about the location. If anybody spots any more mistakes in this fanfic, please let me know and I'll correct what I can.))

The strange man stood up. He positively towered above Tino! Thanks to this height difference, he had to lean down quite a long way to seal Tino's lips in a kiss.

Shit.

His lips were rough, and he kissed him the way a soldier would his wife after returning from a long, harsh war. Tino had no idea what to do. He was so shocked that not even a scream could manage to tear its way out of his mouth. Without realizing it, the short Finnish man balled his hand into a tight fist and shoved it forward, hitting the other man's stomach with quite a bit of force. Their lips broke contact and the mysterious giant groaned loudly. Again, he mumbled something in that strange language of his, which, judging by the tone and context, had to have been a swear word.

Not even thirty seconds after Tino's violent reaction, Lukas sprung into action; picking up a replica Viking sword that had been propped against the wall and pressing it lightly to the strange man's neck, effectively keeping him away from Tino.

Tino glanced up at Lukas, looking for some kind of reassurance, but instead was met with a look of wide eyed shock.

"I-I can't believe it." Lukas said, sword still firm in his hand. "They figured out a way."

"What are we going to do! This guy's out of his fucking mind!" Tino shouted, frantically.

Lukas inhaled heavily; he seemed to be too lost, too shocked to move at the moment.

For minutes, the three of them, even the tunic clad man behind the sword, stood in a heavy silence. Time crept by slowly, as though it were in a lull due to the confusion and fear of a few people. Even the air seemed to move slowly.

At last, Lukas spoke, albeit in a slightly shaky voice, "Tino, you see that green spell book on the shelf? Bring it to me." Wordlessly, Tino did as he was told, placing the emerald book into his friend's single, outstretched hand.

"If I cast a tongue binding spell on the three of us, we can talk this out." Lukas said.

"Why a tongue binding spell?" asked Tino.

"Well, we're stuck with this guy, who obviously doesn't speak the same language as we do, things would obviously go more smoothly if we could at least talk to each other."

"R-right".

With that, Lukas opened the book to a page toward the middle. He then began reciting an arcane chant, bringing a blue aura fourth from the pages of the book. Like glowing smoke, it wisped about all three of the men, forming a continuous chain of sparkling sapphire. But then it disappeared as quickly as it had appeared, leaving the room in an eerie silence.

That silence was finally shattered by a deep voice.

"M' darling wife! Thought you were dead." The blue eyed giant's sharp gaze fixed on Tino with surprising tenderness. Lukas' spell had worked; they could understand one another, even though the mysterious stranger spoke a different language! It was as if his words were translated in Tino's head.

Tino felt his face heat up and his stomach knot, "You must have mistaken me for someone else, I'm not a woman."

"Tino, yer a man, but yer m'wife. Don' ya remember?"

Tino gasped, how on earth did this man know his name?

Lukas lowered the sword, "Sir, you were sealed by way of a magic spell for many centuries. Would you care to at least introduce yourself? We're clueless as to who you are."

The man cleared his throat loudly, as if he were about to give a speech. "M' Berwald Oxenstierna. Came ta' the land of the Finns from the land of the Swedes t' do some trade. Don' remember much, jus' ' wife bein' murdered. Don' know where I am now."

"For the last time, I'm not your wife!"

"Tino!" said Lukas, "He has no idea what's going on, cut him some slack." The slim Norwegian then turned his attention to the blue-clad Viking. "Berwald, I don't know how long you've been trapped in there, but here me out, this future is really different from the world you know. Seeing as you won't be able to go back, there is a lot you will have to learn, including our language. You can only understand us because I used magic, and that particular spell only has a range of three people."

Berwald hummed and began to stare at his surroundings, his icy eyes in a squint, as if attempting to make sense of the world through blurred vision. An electric light on the ceiling caught his eye. "S'bright." he said.

"Well," replied Tino, weakly "It's basically lightning that has been put into a clear container. I won't go into specifics right now."

Berwald moved close to Tino again with long strides, pulling his struggling body into a tight embrace. "M' confused, but yer here. The Gods be praised."

"Look," said Tino, as calmly and civilly as he could manage, "I'm not your wife. That man is dead. I only share the guy's name, for Christ's sake. I'm sure you're not a bad person, and that you're a nice guy and all, but please, let me go!" He struggled against Berwald's tight arms, but to no avail, the man had an iron grip!

"Know 's you." Berwald said, shakily, as if he were about to cry, "Why won' ya jus' let me hold ya?"

Lukas cleared his throat and turned a steely glance to Tino. "Ever considered the possibility of reincarnation?" he said

"R'born." Berwald muttered in understanding, his hot breath tickling Tino's soft, blond hair.

"You're crazy, Lukas!" Tino squeaked.

"Look, this VIKING recognizes you as someone who had the same name. This can't possibly be a coincidence."

"I don't remember….."

"People usually don't."

"But this is so sudden."

"Deal with it."

"Lukas!"

"Tino, he's not going anywhere, you have to deal with him."

"I guess you're right." the photographer could hear the resignation in his own voice.

Lukas snorted triumphantly and approached the two embracing men. It was clear that Berwald wasn't letting go of his "wife" any time soon. "Then it's settled, He's going to live with you."

"What! Why?" shouted Tino, he felt his entire body tense up as his blood run cold. This was too much, far too much. And on his day off from work, too! Unfortunately, it didn't look like his fate was going to change.

Lukas paused thoughtfully for a moment and then decided to answer his friend's question, "He likes you, and he obviously won't hurt you, so isn't it common sense? Besides, I have to take care of Emil."

A wave of guilt washed over Tino, joining the feelings of fear and anger in a pool of powerful emotions. How could he have been so selfish? Lukas had his high-school aged Icelandic half brother to take care of, and dealing with a displaced Viking and helping him adjust to the modern world just wasn't something that he had the time for. Finally, the small Finn managed to wrestle out of the Viking's grip. He ran over to Lukas and embraced him, his eyes stinging with tears.

"I'm sorry. I didn't think. L-Lukas, what should we do?"

The Norwegian chuckled at his friend's dramatic antics. "First, let's get Berwald cleaned up. He's a mess."


	4. Dressing Like a Modern Man

Tino was sure that Berwald knew that he was going to bathe; bathing wasn't a completely alien concept to a Viking. A bathroom, however, especially a shower, was. It came as little surprise to Tino that Berwald could only gawk at the cold, white, tile, the electric lights, and the plumbing.

"Where's th' water?" asked Berwald, his voice deep and soft as ever, yet questioning.

"Well, you won't understand this, but, watch." Tino said, twisting the shower lever on and sending a spray of water roaring from the head.

Berwald let out a defining battle cry and leapt in front of Tino, holding out his long arms protectively.

Lukas laughed, "It's not attacking Tino, and it's only a shower head. This is how people today bathe."

Berwald cautiously placed his hand under the stream of water. After he decided that it was safe, his entire body relaxed, as though tamed.

Tino struggled to keep himself from laughing, "See, it's harmless."

Berwald grunted affirmative and removed his tunic, putting his bare body on display. And what a body it was! The Viking was tall and lean, yet muscular. Pale skin, nicked here and there with a battle scar or two, gleamed slightly under the lights of Lukas' bathroom. Not realizing what he was doing, Tino began looking Berwald up and down, drinking in every detail of the man's body. He felt his face darken with a scarlet blush. It was then that Tino realized what he was doing. His head snapped up, as if suspended by a wire, as he forced his gaze to stay on Berwald's face.

"Looks like you kinda know what to do. Um, could you stand under the water?" Tino asked, almost robotically.

"'Kay" Berwald said, promptly doing as he was told.

Lukas, bottle of shampoo in hand, leaned over and whispered in Tino's ear. "I saw you staring."

"Was not." the Finn replied, his whispering voice sounding more like a hiss.

"Suit yourself, I'm gonna teach him how to wash his hair."

* * *

><p>Half an hour later, both young men stood admiring their handiwork, which was currently standing before them wearing only a soft, white towel around his waist.<p>

"Well, he's clean," said Tino "but he's still naked."

"Point taken." replied Lukas, who disappeared into the room next door, leaving Tino and Berwald alone.

After a few minutes of staring at each other in an awkward silence, Tino decided that it would be a good idea to try to start a casual conversation.

"So, what did you think of your first shower?" Tino asked.

"Was nice. Fast." said Berwald.

"Compared to bathing, it really is." Tino was already running out of things to say.

"Yer face got red when I took off m' tunic. Ya looked 'mbarassed." Berwald mumbled matter-of-factly.

"You were imagining things." said Tino, firmly.

"Don' understand. Ya seen m' body. I've seen yers. We've made love b'fore…."

"Berwald, stop. We've never had sex. Why are you talking like this to a guy you've just met?"

"But, yer m'wife."

"Fuck, this is embarrassing!"

Suddenly, Lukas emerged. Very large clothes were draped haphazardly over his arm.

"Sorry I took so long, I just had to figure out where my dad's old clothes were. He was a pretty big guy, so these should fit you, Berwald. Of course, you and Tino will have to go and buy more later."

Berwald dropped his towel and took the clothing from Lukas. As Berwald held a blue, button up shirt against his torso, Tino realized something very important.

"Lukas," he said, "I don't think he's too familiar with these kinds of clothes."

"That's why you need to go over and help him." replied Lukas, jabbing his friend in the ribs with a sharp elbow.

Red faced, Tino picked up a pair of grey checked boxers and walked over to Berwald. "Put these on like pants," he said "It's weird that you're going to wear a dead guy's underwear, though." Tino shot a glare at Lukas, who shrugged.

"It's all that I have. Mine and my brothers' would be too small."

* * *

><p>After enduring several minutes of fumbling with buttons and zippers and brushing involuntarily against tantalizing skin, Tino could say that he had done his job well. Berwald stood tall in his khaki pants, black dress shoes and blue button up shirt. In fact, he looked almost normal; save for the numerous scabs that dotted his jaw line and his oddly cut hair. Wait, his hair.<p>

"Berwald, what happened to your hair and face?" Tino asked, suddenly curious.

The stormy-eyed Viking tapped his chin with a long index finger, apparently thinking hard. He spoke at last; "They cut m' hair an' shaved m' beard before they sealed me. Tried ta humiliate me."

"Well, that explains the unusual hair cut." Tino said.

"Vikings were proud of their long hair and beards." Lukas explained, obviously for Tino's benefit.

"But the greatest humiliation was not bein' able ta protect ya." Berwald said. His blue eyes were slightly watery.

Tino was speechless. This man, this Viking, was on the verge of tears. For him. Well, if he decided to accept the fact that he might possibly be reincarnated. Tino wasn't ready to form an opinion on that matter yet. In spite of this, he couldn't help but feel strangely touched. Whoever it was that Berwald loved, he loved him with his entire being.

"I-I'm sorry." Tino stuttered, not knowing what else to say.

For the first time that day, Berwald's lips turned upward slightly. Perhaps it was a smile that illuminated the man's stoic face. Tino couldn't tell.

"Anyways," said Lukas, "We have two hours before Emil gets home from school, so let's go get Berwald a haircut."

"Feliks is good at that kind of thing, and he works just down the street. I'll give him a call and tell him what's going on." Tino added.

"Let's go then, come on Berwald."

* * *

><p>The Fab-u-lous salon cut the hair of both men and women, but was still very female oriented. The walls were painted a soft pink giving the entire place an effeminate glow. It smelled of peppermint; there were scented candles burning in the waiting area, after all. Even the magazines seemed to be mostly geared towards women, for there was only one token <em>Men's Health <em>at the bottom of a seemingly endless pile of _Cosmopolitans_ and _People Magazine_s. Neither Tino nor Lukas was fond of this environment, but they came here to have their friend Feliks cut Berwald's hair. They, of course, had two reasons for imploring his help: one; he was their friend and two; he wouldn't freak out, even if magic was involved.

Finally, after ten long minutes of sitting in peppermint hell, the three men saw Feliks approaching. One could certainly say that he was cut out for his job. He had flawless blond hair, which he kept cut just to his mid neck in a tight bob. His expressive green eyes were crowned by perfectly plucked eyebrows. Oh, and who could forget those bubblegum pink nails. Feliks sure did have a flair for the flamboyant.

"So, like, is that the Viking dude you guys told me about over the phone?" he asked, pointing at Berwald.

"Yes," replied Lukas "You don't have to talk to him; he's quiet and doesn't speak English. He, Tino, and I are tongue bound, so if you have any questions to ask him, just ask us."

"Ooooh, okay. The strong, silent type. I like that. I get kinda scared when I have to talk to new peeps." Feliks said. He then turned his gaze to Tino. "He's kind of a hunk." He added, mischievously.

"Okay, okay, let's just get his hair fixed up." groaned Tino, already tired of people implying that he and the Viking were in a relationship.

Tino gestured to Berwald, who decided to stop gawking at cars out the window in order to follow his beloved's instructions.

"Go with this man and sit in the black chair over there. He will use a pair of scissors, which is like two knives, to even out your hair. He will also use a little thing that has blades on the end and buzzes. Don't be afraid when he does, it's not alive. It only cuts your hair closer to the skin." Tino knew his instructions were a bit long winded, but he also knew that they were needed. He didn't want Berwald freaking out again.

Berwald nodded, "Will do as ya say." he said. He then followed Feliks towards the black chair, Tino and Lukas in tow, just in case.

* * *

><p>"Ta-da!" Feliks exclaimed, "I am such a genius."<p>

Berwald's hair had been cut into a short, somewhat choppy style, like jagged yellow ice. Feliks had left short sideburns, giving the Viking a rugged appearance.

"Looks good," said Lukas, "Berwald, do you like your hair?"

"S'short, but I c'n get used to it." the giant replied.

Tino smiled brightly at Feliks, "Thanks, he doesn't look homeless anymore."

The effeminate hairdresser laughed loudly, "Oi, Tino, you, like, have an interesting way of putting things."

"So do you mister 'Toris totally looks like a hot janitorial warrior.'"

"He was wearing a military jacket and wielding some paper towels like a sword. Like, what else could I say?"

Lukas glanced at his cell phone, "I hate to break up this riveting conversation," he said sarcastically, "but we only have fifteen minutes before my brother gets home."

"You're right, we have to head back." said Tino, "Bye, Feliks."

"See ya boys later." Feliks said waving wildly as the three men walked out the door.

* * *

><p>The street had gotten far busier, likely because of the fact that many high schools were releasing students. Berwald could only stare dumbfounded at the cars, completely unable to understand what they were or how they worked.<p>

"Tino," said Lukas, "Maybe you should hold his hand when we cross. You know, for safety."

Tino wordlessly and grudgingly accepted, interlacing his fingers with Berwald's much larger ones. Suddenly, Tino began to feel light headed. His entire world went pitch black, and his body froze. The air grew thick, as thick as water. It was like being trapped in a riptide, pushed along by the hot sea water and unable to reach the shore. Tino attempted to cry out for help, but he couldn't make a sound. It was then that he felt the sensation of falling, and a strange scene unfolded before him.

* * *

><p><em>Two young men stood in a clearing, hand in hand, heads tilted up towards the stars. Both seemed completely content as the soft spring wind shook the branches of the night darkened trees. The taller of the two men, who appeared to be bearded, gazed down at his shorter companion, lovingly.<em>

"_Th' stars seem brighter here." He whispered. He then leaned in for a kiss._

* * *

><p>((Wow, that was a long chapter. XD I still can't believe how many of you guys are following this fanfic. It makes me feel so special, thank you!))<p> 


	5. A New Housemate

All Tino could feel was the pounding pain in his head. Light and color blurred before his fluttering eyes, adding to his confusion. What had happened to him? The last thing Tino remembered was holding Berwald's hand, and then having some sort of dream. No. It wasn't a dream; it was far too real, far too familiar, to be a mere dream. Tino's world began to materialize around him, and he noticed that Lukas, Berwald, Feliks and even Lukas' step brother Emil were standing over him, their hovering faces all full of concern. Tino blinked twice, effectively making his vision clear again; he was laying on a couch in Lukas' living room.

"It's about time ya woke up. We were all worried sick!" said Feliks, "Especially this big lug." The effeminate hairdresser gestured towards Berwald, who didn't seem to notice.

Emil brushed a snowy bang from his eyes "I didn't know Vikings could be so tender." he quipped, as sarcastically as his step brother might have.

Feliks let out a loud laugh.

Lukas cleared his throat. "Any head pain?" he asked.

Tino thought for a moment, the splitting headache that he had when he had first come to was gone. "No. I don't anymore, what happened?"

"You fainted at the crosswalk," Lukas replied, "Berwald carried you back to the house."

The Viking grunted and his face grew red.

"Hey, don't I get any credit?" asked Feliks.

"I'm afraid coming out of the salon and freaking out wasn't very helpful." Lukas said.

"But, like, I was worried about my friend." said Feliks.

"You could have behaved more rationally." said Emil.

"YOU weren't there kido."

"Fair enough."

Tino sat up, it took a bit of effort, but he wasn't going to let a stupid fainting spell keep him on his friend's couch all afternoon.

"Ya okay ta sit up?" asked Berwald, placing a large hand on Tino's shoulder.

"I'm fine." Tino insisted.

"Ya really scared me." The Viking's eyes were swimming.

"I'm sorry." Tino replied awkwardly.

Berwald moved forward, kissing Tino's forehead softly. Tino sighed. It felt nice to have the man that he had loved for so long touching him so tenderly. Especially a man who came from a culture that was decidedly the very opposite of tender.

Wait, the man he had loved for so long? He had only met Berwald hours ago! It was as if he had acquired someone else's memories, and that they had been stuffed into his head in the guise of his own.

"Berwald, I'm afraid I'm not ready for this kind of touching." Tino said, as calmly as was humanly possible.

"Oh, Tino, it's not like Ber-Ber here is, like, stroking your dick or something. A hot guy just kissed you, why are you complaining?" Feliks had an enormous grin on his face.

"Be quiet," Emil said, "and don't be so graphic."

Completely ignoring the bickering coming from behind him, Berwald pulled his lips away from Tino's forehead. "M'sorry." he mumbled, balling up his fists awkwardly.

"Tino," said Lukas, "Did you have any dreams while you were unconscious?"

Tino took a deep breath, "I had some kind of dream, but it felt really real. It was dark, and Berwald and I were in a forest. We were talking and then well, he…."

"Go on." said Lukas.

"Yes, please do." Feliks chimed in.

Tino's entire body felt hot. He wanted the earth to just swallow him up so no one could see him. Too late. Everyone was staring in rapt anticipation, especially Berwald, whose cold eyes seemed to bore into his.

"We kissed." There, he said it, the two dreaded words that he didn't want to allow to leave his mouth. The shameful dream, or perhaps the memory, of the kiss, deep and heavenly, had been brought out before four other men to pick apart and examine.

Feliks practically squealed, pressing his hands together in that damnably feminine way that he always did. Emil was smirking. Lukas was tapping his forehead with his index finger, in contemplation. Then there was Berwald, and judging by his facial expression, he seemed to recognize Tino's story. Perhaps there was something to this reincarnation thing.

"It looks like your memories are slowly starting to return." said Lukas.

"Okay, I'll go with this reincarnation theory. It looks like I have no other choice." Tino said, conceding defeated, "But tell me this, how do I get the rest of these memories back?"

"I can't say when or even in what order you'll get them back. But in most cases that I've read about, events similar to those memories or being around people from the memories is what does it. As for Berwald, his memory is a bit more complete due to his situation, but shaky at best. He will regain the memories that he doen't have already when you do.

Tino sighed, "Don't you have a spell or something that can just restore them now?"

"No." said Lukas, "I'm afraid that it's not that simple."

"Pardon me, but I have a paper to type up, can I just go upstairs now?" Emil asked, with apathy towards the situation that surprised even Tino.

"Yes, Emil, but please don't interrupt me again."

With that, Emil left the living room.

"As I was saying," said Lukas, "You both have to hang around each other and try to trigger the return of each other's memories. For you, Tino, being with Berwald seems to be quite a trigger in and of itself. I guess, just stick together and call me if you need anything."

"Hate to break up this party," said Feliks, "But it's, like, 6:00." The hairdresser held up his cell phone, and indeed, it was getting late.

"Tino, are you okay to drive?" asked Lukas.

"Yes," replied Tino, a hint of irritation in his voice, "I CAN drive."

"Oh, and before you leave listen to me, feed Berwald something bland, like bread. He won't be able to stomach modern food just yet. Oh, and don't forget your camera and his clothes."

"Like, Lukas, you're not his mother, let Tino leave and get down to "reminiscing" all night long with that hunky Viking dude."

"Shut up!" Lukas and Tino said, in unison.

"I'd screw 'em." said Feliks with a shrug.

XxXx

Berwald stroked the smooth side of Tino's black Volvo with rough fingers. "What are these beasts?"

"It's a car." replied Tino, "It can move on its own, but it's not alive. People use it to go places more quickly than walking."

Berwald cocked his head to the side, a gesture that looked almost comical when preformed by such a big man. "Don' understand." 

"I-I don't know how else to explain it," Tino said, holding open the door to the passenger's side, "Get in and sit down."

"'Kay"

XxXx

The ride back to Tino's apartment complex took five minutes at most, but if one were to ask Tino about it, he would say that it felt like it took longer.

Berwald did not like car rides.

At all.

First, the roar of the engine when the car started scared Berwald, and Tino actually had to restrain the giant to keep him from attacking the dashboard of the car. He also had to postpone their ride home a few minutes in order to explain to Berwald that the car-beast had not growled and was no threat to either of them.

When he finally manager to get the car on the road, Tino couldn't help but notice that Berwald looked tense. He held onto the seat tightly, digging his short fingernails into the grey leather. His teeth were gritted, making his intimidating face look even more frightening. Maybe it was the speed. Even though Tino was going a bit more slowly than usual due to the slush on the roads, the car was moving faster than anything that Berwald had ever ridden.

That was it; they had a long way to go. It would take the Viking a very long time to adjust to this strange new world, and there were many difficulties ahead of the two of them.

XxXx

Tino's apartment wasn't big, but it was livable. It consisted of two rooms, really: a front room divided into an odd conglomeration of a kitchen, dining room and living room, and a bedroom containing a double bed with navy blue bedding. The bedroom was Tino's favorite room, his comfort zone so to speak. The furniture was rustic and woody and very familiar; it had been in Tino's bedroom when he still lived with his parents. His walls were covered in a great array of framed photos, more than the average person might have, because Tino was a photographer, after all. Tino's favorite part of his room, however, was his collection of Moomin memorabilia and books, which sat facing his bed on a small bookshelf, serving as a reminder of his childhood in Finland.

After a hasty dinner, Tino found himself in that very room, lying in bed beside his new housemate. Neither of them had bothered to change into pajamas, and Tino almost didn't care that Berwald insisted on holding him as they drifted off into a much needed slumber. Normally, he would raise his voice or try to squirm away, but at the moment, he was simply too tired. Besides, the warmth of the Viking's well muscled chest and the steady drum of his heartbeat was a more than welcome sleep aid.

He would never admit that it felt good.

He would reprimand Berwald in the morning.

But right now, all Tino wanted to do was sleep.

XxXx

((Oi, I hope that this chapter wasn't too rushed. I feel like I kinda threw Emil (Iceland) away. He'll be back later, though.))


	6. Adjustment

_Tino could feel his feet sinking into the forest floor slightly, interrupting the brown and green expanse with his footprints. It was a warm, bright, summer day, and the dappled light of the sun danced between the green tree leaves. As beautiful as this day was, Tino was disappointed; he had not spotted a single deer, and his mother and sisters were counting on him to bring back dinner._

_Just then, there was a distant sound, like footsteps. Hopeful, the Finn pulled an arrow from his bag and placed it on his bow. He would wait; soon, whatever it was would be in range. As the footsteps grew louder and closer, Tino realized that they belonged not to a deer, but a group of men. Faintly he could hear speech; there were many of them. Tino darted behind the cover of a large, scrubby bush; for all he knew, they could be members of a rival tribe, and revealing himself could mean his death. Tino gripped his bow tightly and held his breath. _

_They were passing by just now; in a flurry of beards, leather armor and bags full of something or other. They all held weapons, a great variety including spears, axes, and a few swords. Despite being heavily armed, the men seemed fairly carefree, and spoke wildly to one another in a strange, harsh language. Though still frightened, Tino was rapidly becoming curious. He wanted to see if he could get a glimpse of what the men might be carrying. Unfortunately, it was hard to see much of anything from where he kneeled, so with a strange, squatting walk, Tino inched forward as quietly as he could, bow still in hand._

_Suddenly, the unthinkable happened: Tino's foot got caught on a root. Before he knew it, he was falling forward, dropping his bow and arrow and landing directly into the path of the strangers. Tino cried out in pain and horror. Not daring to stand, he gazed up at the men; all of them stood silent, frozen. They stared back down at him with sharp eyes. One man, older than the others, stepped forward and gestured roughly for the Finn to stand up. Tino got to his feet and cleared his throat._

"_May I ask," he said, trying to will away his fear, "what you come for?"_

_The elder, who seemed to be the leader of the group, tilted his head to one side, his brows knitted. Oh, it seemed that they didn't speak his language at all. Where were they from? The troop of men began to speak amongst themselves as two other, younger men came fourth._

_Both were blond, long haired and bearded. One of the men; a green eyed warrior carrying an axe, began to speak. It seemed that he had picked up bits and pieces of the language of the Finns._

"_We are….. team of rowers. Come to do trade. No fight, only peace."_

_Tino was skeptical, "Why then, are you armed and armored?" he asked._

_The green eyed man put his axe down on the ground, and the other men proceeded to do the same._

"_We carry for fight rivals. They not you, you friend." the man said, clumsily. "I Ivar, this Berwald."_

_Ivar pointed to the taller man at his side. Berwald must have been richer than Ivar, for he had come with a sword. Berwald was a real giant of a man, his eyes seemed to be made of blue-green ice._

_XxXx_

Tino awoke in a cold sweat; his head was in horrible pain, just as it had been after his first dream-memory. Oh God, two visions within twelve hours! If what Lukas said about the memories was correct, just meeting Berwald must have drawn this particular memory out of hiding. Yes, that had to have been it; after all, similar events apparently triggered similar memories. Tino smiled; he was proud to be able to explain things on his own.

Since it was now morning, Tino decided that it would be a good idea to get out of bed; he had work today, after all. He glanced over at the clock; it was seven thirty. His alarm wasn't supposed to go off for another hour.

As Tino tried to sit up, he noticed pressure across his chest. He looked down to see a long, pale arm draped over him. Tino gritted his teeth and looked over at Berwald's sleeping form.

"Shit, I forgot he fell asleep like that."

Upon hearing Tino's voice, Berwald stirred, his arctic eyes blinking open. The giant Viking pulled Tino closer to his chest, sighing. Tino groaned, why did Berwald have to be so damn affectionate? Sure, he was a good looking guy, but Tino was only getting used to having him around. Wait, did he just admit that Berwald was good looking?

"Dreamed of the day I met ya. Remember it clearly now. We were in th' forest. Ya fell."

Tino froze. This was, well, he couldn't explain it; he could only feel his jaw go slack, creating a comically shocked expression.

"I had-I had, the same dream, Berwald." Tino managed to force out.

Berwald's eyes grew wide. "Lukas was r'ght. Th' memories, they're returnin'."

"Well, yes. And I'm sure there will be more. Let's eat and get cleaned up; I have to go to work and there's no way I'm leaving you alone. I don't want my apartment destroyed."

"Mmm."

XxXx

Tino paced back and forth in front of his car; both he and Berwald were ready to leave, but Tino couldn't bring himself to do that just yet. The specifics of taking a Viking to work were making things more complicated than they needed to be. How on earth would he explain Berwald's presence to Elizabeta, his boss?

There was of course, the option of saying that he was a foreign exchange student, but that wouldn't work; Berwald seemed to be in his mid twenties already. Or maybe Tino could say that he was a Swedish immigrant, shadowing him in order to learn English? That wouldn't work either; Berwald was Tongue Bound to Tino and understood everything he said; it wouldn't be very believable.

There was also the option of telling his boss the truth; after all, Lukas, Emil and Feliks believed it. But they were different. Lukas and Emil were far too desensitized to weird magic to be surprised for very long, and Feliks just accepted things and went with the flow. Elizabeta was far different; there was no way that Tino himself could convince her of Berwald's origin.

She did, however, know Lukas; she had even seen him practice magic! That was it, if anybody could convince Elizabeta of his story, it was Lukas. Quickly, Tino pulled his cell phone out of his back pocket and called up his friend.

"Hello, Lukas? Could you do me a favor?"

XxXx

The Héderváry Photography Studio was relatively small, and conveniently located next to a Kroger super market. Often, curious grocery shoppers would stop by; they were always in a hurry to get home, but still interested nonetheless. One of these customers; a heavy set women with an armful of grocery bags, was busily chatting with Mike, one of Tino's co-workers, about having her young children photographed.

Berwald stood close to Tino, half observing that conversation, half staring in awe at the photographs hung on nearly every wall. Tino couldn't help but grin; the poor Viking was once again, over stimulated.

Elizabeta stood behind the counter, her curly, brown hair pulled into a low ponytail. On the other side of the counter, stood Lukas, busily talking to her.

"Good", thought Tino, "he got here before us."

Elizabeta, who noticing that her employee had entered the studio, turned and smiled broadly. Lukas too, turned around, looking slightly irritated, as he always did. Tino walked briskly to join them, and Berwald stalked behind him as though he were an obedient, domesticated bear.

"Hello Tino," Elizabeta said brightly, "I'm glad to see you. And this must be Berwald."

"I'm sorry to drag him with me, but I'm afraid to leave him at home."

"Oh, don't worry; I would be afraid, too. And of course, young lovers should never be separated." Elizabeta had a mischievous glint in her eye. Lukas smirked knowingly. Damn it, they were in cahoots!

"We are NOT lovers." said Tino

"That's not what Lukas told me, besides, look at Berwald's eyes. He understood what you just said, and he seems pretty upset."

Tino looked back at Berwald: the giant's face had fallen. He stared back at Tino pleadingly.

"Look, I'm sorry. Maybe, if what I saw in my first memory was true, I will love you some day. Now is just too soon." Tino took Berwald's hand reluctantly; it was huge and bearish in his own. Bearish, Tino liked this description. The Viking did have a hilarious tendency to act like an overgrown teddy bear at times.

_Click. _There was a flash of light, and Tino turned to see Lukas and Elizabeta laughing. In Elizabeta's hands was a large, black, Nikon camera.

"That one's a keeper." she said with a chuckle.

Berwald stood as erect and strong as an oak tree, his eyes dangerously narrow. He glared at Elizabeta and her flashing contraption.

"Tino, she jus' used magic. Might want to kill ya." Berwald growled.

"That's not magic," Tino said through gritted teeth, "That's a camera. It sometimes flashes light. It is used to make pictures. It's harmless."

"If it hurt ya, tell me. I'm a warrior. I c'n crush that, cam-err-ah."

Lukas chimed in, "Berwald, there is no need. Just stay calm today. Tino is safe; watch him and stay out of his way."

"Tino, let me know if he needs anything." Elizabeta added.

XxXx

For the next week, Berwald accompanied Tino to work. He certainly wasn't used to modern technology just yet, but was learning to tolerate things he saw every day, such as cars and cameras. In fact, Berwald had only attempted to attack the dashboard of Tino's car once more before he realized that it was not, in fact, growling at him.

Berwald's face was also beginning to heal. For the first few days, Tino had left the stubble on the Viking's face alone; for fear that shaving would re-open his cuts. On Friday, however, Tino taught a reluctant Berwald how to shave. The giant truly looked handsome; no longer was his strong jaw obscured by heavy, blond stubble.

In spite of all the progress that had been made, Tino still felt like he had gotten nowhere; Berwald still didn't understand much about the modern world at all, and Tino simply didn't know how to explain it. Simple things, things like TV's and toaster ovens that he had taken for granted, were brand new to Berwald; and explaining them was extremely difficult.

There was also the communication barrier. Sure, Berwald was Tongue Bound to him and Lukas, but he still had virtually no grasp of the English language. As a result, people he encountered thought he might be rude or stupid. Acting as Berwald's translator could be quite frustrating.

Despite these proverbial road blocks, Tino couldn't say that he hated having the Viking around. Sure, he was out of place and over affectionate, but he could also be endearing in his own strange way. On Saturday evening, Tino sat in front of the TV, shivering violently. Berwald noticed his plight and wordlessly wrapped a white afghan around his shoulders. At that gesture, Tino just couldn't help but smile. Maybe, just maybe, he would be able to fall in love with a displaced Viking.

XxXx

((Sorry about the wait guys, I moved into my dorm room a week and a half ago. Anyways, this story is going to really start picking up now that I've got all of the set-up stuff out of the way. I'm gonna throw a lot of challenges Berwald and Tino's way, let's hope that the story gets interesting enough.))


	7. Almost a Brawl

Tino and his Viking companion stood in the hallway of a shopping mall. Sunlight fluttered down from skylights on the ceiling, making the potted palm trees cast gentle shadows. There also seemed to be a pervading horse theme throughout the building. In the middle of a large, fountain spotted, indoor pond, there was a horse shaped topiary rearing on its hind legs. There were also many sculptures of cartoonish horses in multiple colors, bent into an odd wave. They were used for further decoration of the mall.

"Okay, Berwald, you now have clothes of your own. We don't have to re-wash those old clothes every other day." Tino and Berwald's arms were full of a colorful array of shopping bags. Both men took a seat on a black, squiggle-shaped bench beside the indoor pond, gratefully dropping the load to the floor.

Berwald glanced around excitedly at the scenery. The water in the pond suddenly drew his attention. He dipped a great paw of a hand into it, and made little ripples with his fingers. Tino couldn't help but grin; it was odd to see a grown man act in such a childish way, especially a great warrior. Perhaps it was even cute.

"You like the water?" Tino asked, playfully.

"Ya. M' hands 'r sore from carryin' those bags 'round the market. Cold water feels nice." said Berwald in reply.

Tino laughed, "My hands kinda hurt, too. Mind if I join you?"

"Hmm." Berwald took Tino's hand in his own and brought it into the chilly water. He laced their fingers together and upturned his lips into what Tino recognized as a Berwald smile. Even though he wanted to protest the giant's rather forward action, Tino just couldn't bring himself to let go of his hand. They had only lived together for five weeks, but the simple act of touching Berwald did something to Tino's insides that he couldn't explain. It was like the feeling he got in high school when he saw a boy he was attracted to: his heart beat faster and his stomach felt strangely unsettled. He also felt warm and blissful.

Tino hadn't had any visions of his previous life lately, but maybe his feelings from that time were beginning to return. The idea of falling in love with Berwald terrified him. It was too much, too soon. Tino didn't even know the full story of how he had fallen for the Viking in the first place!

"Somethin' wrong?" Berwald's voice broke the silence of Tino's thoughts. He looked up into the large man's icy gaze.

"No, just thinking about, uh, teaching you English."

That was a lie, well, a half lie. Tino had really been thinking about educating the Viking earlier that day, just not at that moment. True, Berwald had picked up bits and pieces of the English language, but not much. Besides, Tino was Tongue Bound to Berwald, making it impossible for him to do the teaching himself. Berwald needed a tutor, but Tino wasn't sure who would be fit for the job.

"Would like t' know more." Berwald said. "Yes," he added in English.

Tino smiled, "Good pronunciation, Berwald. My hand's cold. Can I take it out of the water?"

Wordlessly, Berwald brought both of their hands out of the pond, keeping their fingers entwined. He placed them gingerly on the bench between them.

"Thank you." said Tino. He was a bit flustered that their hand holding was now more obvious.

A bizarre tension hung in the air like a haze. Tino wanted to move in closer; maybe even to rest his head on Berwald's shoulder, but he didn't dare take action. Who knew where even such an innocent and affectionate act could lead them? Why did Tino want it to lead them into unknown territory? It was a strange feeling, a feeling of knowing someone intimately and yet not knowing them very well at all. Wow, reincarnation was strange.

"Faggots."

Once again, Tino's quiet reflection was interrupted by someone talking, this time, it sounded like a child.

Standing a short distance away was a young boy who looked to be about ten years old. He had brown hair and an upturned nose. He was round faced and heavy, like a pig standing on its hind legs.

"Fags." The boy was pointing and laughing at Tino and Berwald.

Tino let go of Berwald's hand and stood up. "You know, that's not a very nice thing to call someone." he tried his best to be patient with the child; after all, he was probably just copying the behavior of someone older.

The pig-boy sneered. "You talk funny, where are you from, Russia?"

Tino was fuming at this point. If you valued your life, you would never call a Finn a Russian, ever. "I'm from Finland, kiddo. You're mom must be worried about you. Why don't you go find her?"

"Go back to FAGland, I don't need my mom." The boy scurried over to Tino and kicked him in the shin. Hard.

Tino winced in pain, but before he had a chance to give the kid a piece of his mind, Berwald rose from the bench. He glared at the one who dared harm his Tino with anger as cold as an arctic wind. Before Tino could stop him, he lifted the boy up, carried him a few yards away, and put him down.

"No." he snarled in English at the child. People around them were beginning to stare.

The boy burst into tears, his mouth distorted into the shape of a rubber band. His loud cries captured the attention of what looked to be an adult version of him. The pig-man stomped over to Berwald, his face red with rage. Sensing that things were about to get ugly, Tino walked up and stood beside Berwald.

"What did you do to my child?" the large man demanded, his pudgy hand resting comfortingly on his son's shoulder.

Tino chimed in immediately. "Sorry sir, you'll have to excuse him, he's from Sweden and doesn't speak much English."

"I don't care," barked the man, "What the hell did he do?"

"Sir, your son called me a faggot, made fun of my heritage, and kicked me in the shin. Berwald here wanted to help me out, so he picked up your child and moved him. Sorry if he scared him, h-he meant no harm, I promise."

"My son did none of that!" the man growled, thrusting a sausage-like finger into Tino's chest.

"Look," said Tino, "I'm not lying. I suggest we all calm down and forget about this. Um, would your son like a cookie? I can go buy him one."

"You little….." the porcine man gripped the collar of Tino's shirt aggressively. Tino glared at the man, and gripped his forearm firmly.

"I don't want to get into a fight, okay." said Tino, trying to hide the frantic feeling that had seized him.

Suddenly, the man's hand was ripped from Tino's collar by a furious looking Berwald. The Viking snarled and punched Tino's aggressor in the stomach.

"Daddy!" the boy shouted.

Tino couldn't let this go on. He gripped Berwald harshly around the waste and pulled him away from the man with strength he had forgotten that he possessed. Tino spun the giant around to face him and grabbed his shoulders roughly.

"Berwald, what the fuck!" Tino's voice came out in a screech. "You can't just punch strangers!"

"He was gonna hurt ya." said Berwald.

"But still, we could get in trouble." hissed Tino.

Berwald fell forward slightly, a pained expression on his face. He had been punched in the back! Behind him stood the man and his son. Berwald turned around, fists clenched. A Viking never turned down a fight, and a small audience had gathered to watch! He swung for a punch, but Tino managed to run between the two men and catch Berwald's hand in his own.

"Please, both of you, cut it out!" said Tino, anger filling his voice.

"Stop, this is security!" a uniformed man and woman pushed their way through the crowd, and stomped towards the four in its center.

_Shit_, thought Tino.

XxXx

"Berwald," Tino said, "You're lucky I talked those mall cops into letting you go. You're also lucky that the guy you tried to fight didn't press charges. The fact that you don't speak English saved your ass. Don't do something like that again."

Berwald looked at the floor remorsefully. "I jus' wanted ta protect ya."

Tino's heart sank. Berwald really did have good intentions; he just didn't understand that fights like that weren't appropriate in the modern age. "Berwald, I'm sorry I yelled at you." he said, "This time, this place. It's so different from where you came from. Maybe I need to get you a tutor sooner than I thought."

Berwald gazed at Tino, "Caused ya s' much trouble. S'rry."

Tino reached up and put a reassuring hand on Berwald's shoulder. "Berwald, don't worry. You can't help it, you're learning. Besides, I feel, you know I-I, let's go home."

Tino had almost said them, those three words he was not ready to say. Reincarnation was strange, so very strange indeed.


	8. Fracture

The sun was glowing weakly through the cheap metal blinds, making an odd striped pattern on the beige carpet. Tino had a difficult time getting out of bed, but a deep, breathy sigh from the living room area coaxed him from his warm cocoon of blankets.

Berwald's body was sprawled out haphazardly across the pull out couch, his long legs hanging over the edge. All of the ample blankets that Tino had given him had been kicked off, but the Viking didn't seem the least bit cold. In fact, he insisted on sleeping shirtless! Tino wished he didn't. His muscular chest rising and falling slowly with his breaths made Tino feel hot. He hastily banished the naughty thoughts from his head and pulled the blankets back over Berwald's sleeping form. He felt so guilty about having such lustful feelings. Berwald had only come into his life a month ago.

"I need a cold shower." Tino murmured aloud.

XxXx

Berwald sat at the oak table in the kitchen, running his large hands over the slightly dented surface. He took a loud gulp of his water, anticipating breakfast. His azure eyes were fixed on Tino, who was currently spreading coco colored Nutella over several pieces of toast. Tino smiled brightly and brought over two plates. He set one down in front of his companion before sitting down with his own.

"Berwald, I think you're ready for richer foods. This is called Nutella. It's made with hazelnuts and something called chocolate. If it's too much for you, just let me know." Tino took a bite of toast, getting a glob of the chocolaty spread on his upper lip. "So tasty." He whispered blissfully. "One of my favorites."

Tino chuckled as Berwald cautiously lifted his toast and took a bite. His eyes grew wide and his lips turned upward in a rather goofy manner. "S' good."

Tino had to bite back laughter at Berwald's absolutely ridiculous facial expression. "I'm glad you like it."

"Mmmhmm."

"And I have a surprise for you. Remember visiting Eduard and Yekaterina the other day?"

"Y'mean the man w'th the strange things over 'is eyes an' his wife."

"Yes, Eduard with the glasses and Yekaterina, the teacher."

"What about 'em."

"Well, every weekend, you get to go to their house and learn English with Yekaterina. She teaches children from…..faraway lands how to speak English. I bet she can teach you, too."

Berwald raised a tarnished gold eyebrow. ""m not a child."

"It doesn't matter." Tino replied, "Now, let's get going. Work starts in two hours."

XxXx

Tino felt a bit light headed as he descended the concrete stairs with Berwald in tow. The clash and clang of their winter boots echoed throughout the vertical room. There were three more flights of stairs to go until they reached the ground floor. Living on one of the upper levels did have its drawbacks, after all.

"Tino, is s'mthing wrong." Berwald's voice bounced around the room softly. Tino could have sworn that the stairs in front of him seemed to be wiggling like water.

"I'm fine," he replied "just light headed."

He had spoken too soon.

That feeling, the swept away feeling that he hadn't experienced in weeks, suddenly gripped him. As the world around him faded, Tino felt himself fall forward. He heard the dark echo of Berwald's shouting follow him as he tumbled down.

XxXx

_Everyone in the village had come to gawk at the new Viking visitors Tino had brought back with him. Tino even spotted his mother and two younger sisters in the crowd, staring with round violet eyes. _

_Old Pyry, the village elder, stood at the front of the crowd, running a hand through his long, snowy beard._

"_You say that you are a team of rowers, but I see no boat. Explain yourselves."_

_Ivar replied in broken Finnish. "Hit rapids. Destroyed boat. Could only save small part of belongings. Going east, need place to stay while rebuild ship."_

_Old Pyry raised a gnarled hand and gestured to Taisto. The much younger man walked to join Old Pyry and Tino, his deep brown hair flowing behind him like a cape. He and the elder conferred quietly, Tino only caught small bits of what was being said._

_Pyry spoke to Ivar again. "The shaman Taisto and I have reached a decision. Summer will soon turn to fall, and if you are not done with the ship soon enough, the water will freeze and you shall be trapped here for the winter. Thus, we will need a means of communication. Tino, come forward. Ivar, send me one of your men."_

_Confused, Tino walked on shaky legs to join the two older men. He looked back at Ivar, who gestured for Berwald to go forward. Tino cowered slightly as Berwald moved toward him, his intense gaze focused and sharp. Finally, Berwald stopped in front of him Tino. As the two men stood across from each other, Taisto began to chant. A thick smoke the color of ocean water danced around them and abruptly faded. _

"_Newcomer, can you understand me? State your name." Taisto shouted loudly enough for all who looked on to hear. _

"_M' Berwald Oxenstierna, th' rower, trader and warrior." _

"_The Tongue Binding spell has worked." Old Pyry announced. "I will need fifteen more men from each side. We must be able to communicate in order to live in harmony."_

_Tino looked up at Berwald, who continued to stare at him. "Yer beautiful." he mumbled._

"_I am not much to look at." Tino replied desperately, frantically. Berwald only persisted._

"_I wan' ya to be m'wife."_

"_What! But, I can't bear you any children. I'm sure that you have other wives back home who could."_

"_M' not m'rried. This beard s' growin' cause I couldn' find time ta shave on the journey."_

_Tino blinked "What does your beard have to do with any of this?"_

_Berwald sighed, "W'n a man is married, he grows a beard."_

_These men certainly did have a strange culture. "Berwald," Tino said, his voice shaking, "Why would you want to marry a man? Do you want your family name to die out?" _

"_I don' care, jus' wan' you."_

_XxXx_

_Some villagers allowed their new Viking companions into their homes. Others, perhaps because they were more cautious, preferred to keep them outside in animal hide tents. Tino wanted to be part of the later group because, quite frankly, Berwald intimidated him, but his mother insisted on making a new straw bed for the big man and welcoming him into their home._

"_Always be hospitable to your guests," she had said, "It's what your father would have wanted." _

_Somehow, Tino doubted that._

_Despite Tino's fears and protests, Berwald, looking freshly shaved and virginal, moved into their little wooden shack. During the day, the blond giant would join his brethren in working on the construction of the longship. _

_When he wasn't doing farm work, hunting or playing with his sisters, Tino's mother guilt tripped him into helping the Vikings with their massive project. Tino found himself running to and fro, chopping down trees and carting logs over to Berwald and his team of carpenters. _

_After several weeks, as a skeletal ship began to take shape, Tino's fear of Berwald had all but subsided. Despite his forward personality and startling glare, he was certainly a gentle giant. So gentle that Tino wondered how he possibly could have come from a tribe of fearsome warriors. While the men around him shouted, he worked quietly, lovingly shaping the wood with the many tools in his arsenal. Tino loved to watch Berwald work. He was truly a skilled carpenter. As he carved and sawed, Berwald would make brief but genuine conversation with Tino, constantly asking if he was all right and if he needed a break. Though Berwald's kindness warmed his insides, Tino would hastily insist that he was a man and could do these things by himself. _

_Tino's sisters positively adored Berwald. __Tähti and Airi would jump all over him as soon as he came through the door, begging him to tell them a story. He would sit them down by the fire, and with his soft, deep voice, he would tell them tales of his many travels and battles. Tino, taken by the sweet sight of the warrior entertaining two small girls, couldn't help but listen to his tales. He told of his bravery and strength, yet he remained modest all at once._

_It didn't take long for strange feelings to come over Tino. He was a grown man, but he had never felt such a tender affection for someone before. When Berwald was near, his heart would beat faster, and Tino almost felt sick. Yet it was a pleasurable sickness._

_In an attempt to understand, Tino approached his mother and asked her this question: "Why do I feel so strange when Berwald is near me? I feel ill, but I like it. I don't know why."_

_Tino's mother wiped a dewdrop tear from her eye. "Love." she answered simply._

_XxXx_

When Tino woke, he noticed that the pain wasn't only in his head this time. His right leg ached. Carefully, he opened his eyes, blinking to adjust to the harsh lightness of the white room. At the foot of his bed, Tino noticed Lukas, Elizabeta and Berwald, all wearing an identical look of concern. Behind them stood both of his parents, a pair of short, gaunt, grey haired old Finns. His mother clung tightly to his father, sobbing quietly. Tino then noticed that his leg was covered in a thick, white cast.

"Looks like he's come to." said Lukas, which sent Berwald rushing to his side.

"Yer safe. I've got ya." he said, clutching Tino's hand. Tino noticed that his father averted his eyes a bit. Great. Clearly, Berwald's obvious display of affection towards him was making his father angry. Couldn't he just accept that Tino was gay, like his mother had?

"Figures," groaned Lukas, "Berwald literally carried you to my house, freaking the fuck out and shoving random pedestrians aside. I noticed that you were out cold and your leg was bent funny, so I called an ambulance."

Tino's mother let out a loud sob, "My poor baby."

Elizabeta walked briskly over to the old Finnish couple. "Don't worry; your son will be fine. He's tough. "

Tino's mother pulled her tear stained face from her husband's flannel shirt. "Thank you. I just got emotional. I'm his mother, after all."

Elizabeta smiled gently. "He can take as much time off as he needs to; Mike can pick up the slack in the studio 'till he gets better. He can't really work if he has a broken leg and random fainting spells."

"And that brings me to my question," Lukas said with a nod, bouncing the stubborn curl on the side of his head. "Did you remember something from your previous life?"

Tino's brows furrowed as he tried to recall his vision. Berwald squeezed his hand comfortingly. Finally, Tino decided that he remembered what it had been about. "I had a dream about Berwald arriving at some village, I think it was mine. The boat that he came in was destroyed."

"Mmm, had a dream 'bout that last night." said Berwald.

Lukas sighed "Looks like the memories are becoming more intrusive than I thought they would. Elizabeta, is it okay if Tino takes time off of work until I come up with a way to make them less… inconvenient."

"Of course." replied Elizabeta, "I said he could take off as much time as he needed."

Just then, the door swung open. In walked a tall, burly man in scrubs and a lab coat. He wore his platinum blonde hair slicked back in a business like way and carried a manila envelope in his hand.

"I see you've woken up. I'm Doctor Ludwig Beilschmidt." The man had a harsh and loud voice.

"Hello." said Tino, trying to be cooperative.

"You have quite a few visitors." said Doctor Beilschmidt, trying awkwardly to make small talk. He opened his manila folder. "Anyways, you fractured your leg in three places. X-rays are on the disk I'm going to give you. I had to surgically place pins in your leg, so you will have to come back in a few weeks. We will be giving you a wheelchair and crutches. Don't try to get around without them."

Tino was a bit relieved when the doctor's medical tirade finally ended, he only wanted to relax. He was tired, and he had a headache and a very broken leg.

"We will release you in a couple of hours." Dr. Beilschmidt said. "Remember, the X-rays are on this disk." The aforementioned disk was placed on a nearby counter.

"Ve, Ludwig, another patient needs to talk to you." A slim, auburn haired man in nurse's scrubs had playfully poked his head through the door. Dr Beilschmidt's face turned fire truck red.

"I'm afraid I have to leave you now. Um, feel better." with that, he left the room.

"Lukas, I don't trust that Viking man I've heard so much about alone with Tino. I think I should take the two of them to stay at our house. We're retired, you know, so we have time." Tino's mother said.

Tino couldn't help but feel a bit upset with his mother for not trusting Berwald, but at the same time, it was plain to see that he did not have the modern day life skills to help Tino around.

So with a sigh, Tino accepted his fate. As much as he loved his parents, he wasn't sure how they would fare with affectionate, clueless Berwald around, especially his father.

XxXx

I would like to give a special thank you to Fablespinner for the info on Viking beards and Viking marriage.

Fun fact: Vikings could shave. Archeologists have found razor blades dating from that time!


	9. Kiss

((So, I realized two things. I initially put the beginning of the story in October and had it snowing. I have changed my mind about this because it is simply unrealistic. I have never witnessed October snow in Louisville. Secondly, Tino was released from the hospital too soon. I guess I'll just leave it. Suspension of disbelief FTW.))

XxXx

It wasn't long until Tino found himself in his parents' living room, his injured leg propped up on a massive pile of pillows. Though the TV was on, Tino couldn't concentrate: the noisy shuffle and chatter of his parents bringing the suitcases through the front door was far too distracting.

Berwald, meanwhile, sat in a high backed armchair across the dimly lit, wood paneled room. His eyes, as intense as ever, were trained on Tino. "Shall I h'lp them?"

Tino, still groggy from his stay in the hospital, sighed. "No, it's fine." He said, trying not to think about the communication nightmare that would undoubtedly occur if he allowed the Viking to do so.

"Ve'ry well." Berwald focused his attention to the harsh mechanical glow of the TV. "Still don' understand how those pictures move."

Tino smiled at Berwald's naivety. "Don't worry about it, just relax. We've had a long day."

"Tino, how are you feeling?" His mother was standing in the doorway, leaning on the frame slightly. Her grey hair was plastered to her face with sweat.

"Tired." said Tino, "but I have Berwald here to keep me company."

His mother smiled, "I'm surprised. He sure is well behaved. "

"I thought you didn't trust him."

"Well, no, I don't trust Berwald completely just yet. A mother's gotta look out for her son, you know! Especially when he's hurt."

"Mom, he may be kind of clueless, but he's not a bad guy."

Tino's mother had taken a seat on the arm of the sofa. She patted Tino's cast lightly with a bony hand.

"He's a Viking, dear. Don't you remember what they taught you in history class?"

Tino couldn't counter his mother's argument. Vikings pillaged and burned, they even had the audacity to slaughter defenseless monks in Lindisfarne. How then, could Tino be sure that Berwald wouldn't turn on him? But still, Berwald's behavior was rather atypical for a Viking Warrior, and Tino never felt as though he were in danger around him. He glanced over at Berwald, who sat in silence. No doubt he was listening for English words he recognized.

"Tino hurt. Help?" Berwald was trying to communicate with Tino's mother in English. He sounded like a caricature of a caveman.

"No. I can take care of him." It was clear that Berwald didn't understand everything she had said, but realized that his aid was not needed.

"Perkele, Tarja, where will that Swede be sleeping?" Tino recognized his father's rough voice right away. The balding man stood in the doorway, the suitcases containing Berwald's clothing hanging from his hands.

"Marko, I told you already, we're giving him the air mattress!" replied Tino's slightly exasperated mother.

"You sure they won't share a room?" His father spat, "Bet that Viking's gay, too. Damn Swede."

"DAD!" Tino shouted, forgetting that Berwald likely didn't understand and therefore wouldn't be offended.

"You could at least be more welcoming." His mother added.

Tino watched as his father's face fell, almost apologetically. The man really had no filter between his brain and mouth, and it could be very off-putting to those who didn't know him. "Sorry, son. Guess I should be thankful you two aren't, well, intimate."

Tino didn't feel like arguing with his father, so he laid back. "Don't worry about it."

"I'll take the bags upstairs." and with that, he left the room.

A silent lull filled the room, and for a moment, nobody spoke. Finally, Tino's mother leaned over Tino's ear, letting loose a small whisper; "If you two are together, you can tell me."

He couldn't deny his feelings for Berwald, feelings that grew stronger by the second, but Tino couldn't bring himself to say anything. Instead, he just embraced his mother around the neck, allowing her maternal warmth to fill his tired body.

XxXx

After both Tino and Berwald's beds were set up, Tino's father retreated to the shed out back. He wouldn't show up until dinner was ready. Tino knew. Every time his father was under a great amount of stress, he would hide himself behind his latest carpentry project.

Tino's mother, meanwhile, had gone to the grocery store to pick up some salmon for dinner. She had almost taken Berwald with her; she feared leaving her son alone with him. Tino pointed out that he had lived alone with Berwald for some time, and his mother relented and allowed them to sit in the living room together. Alone.

Tino didn't want Berwald to leave his side; he felt strange about the fact but was through denying it. He liked, no, loved, the handsome Swede's company.

"Tino, what did yer f'ther call me?" asked Berwald. Tino opened his tired eyes and turned to Berwald. This was going to sting. Almost as much as the time his father had called his high school boyfriend a "flaming faggot". Maybe even more so than that time.

"Gay, homosexual. Both are words for men who don't fall in love with or have sexual attraction to women. I'm gay, I only like guys."

Berwald's eyes widened, "Like a fuðflogi?"

It took Tino a moment to recall one of Lukas' numerous rants on Viking society to remember what that word meant; one who fleas the female sexual organ. "Yes, exactly." Tino's voice was soft.

"Th'ts w't they called me." Berwald's face was downcast.

"Don't be ashamed," said Tino, placing a hand onto the side of Berwald's face, "Neither of us can change it."

"M'know, m' not ashamed t' love ya."

It sounded cheesy. Like something out of one of his aunt's trashy romance novels, But Tino didn't care. This utterance was the straw that broke the camel's back; the one thing that made Tino finally bring his love out of hiding.

"I think I love you." He whispered, drawing his face closer to Berwald's. It took him a moment to realize what he was doing. Instinctively, he shut his eyes and wrapped an arm languidly around Berwald's sturdy neck. In almost an instant, he felt a calloused paw of a hand cupping his cheek. Tino leaned in and forgot the rest of the world.

The dull pain in his leg no longer mattered, only the slide of lips and tongue against his own. They were entangled and desperate. A kiss, a mutual kiss. One that had been waiting patiently to take place. "I've instigated a make out session!" Tino thought as they finally broke away.

"M'sorry." said Berwald, "Only been here a short time, too soon?"

"No, not too soon. I've known you since before I was born." Tino grinned at what he thought was a cleaver comment. He would have to write that one down! "So, um, can we do it again? Maybe?"

Berwald didn't have to be asked twice. He leaned in for yet another kiss. Tino swore he felt his brain melt.

"VOI LUOJA!"

Neither Tino nor Berwald had heard the door open. Abruptly, they both ended their kiss and snapped their heads in the direction of the shout.

Tino's father loomed in the doorway, open mouthed and thoroughly covered with sawdust. "I come in to get a glass of water and find you…..you. Why couldn't I have a real son?"

Tino bit his lip. This was hardly new. Every boyfriend that Tino managed to bring home during his high school and college years got this same treatment. It was a Väinämöinen rite of passage. Marko, his father, attempted to scare away every man that touched Tino in the desperate hope that his son would "grow out of his queer phase" and find a nice young lady to settle down with.

Before Tino could act, Berwald stood up from his kneeling position and swaggered over to his father, towering above the short statured Finn and attempting to slice him to bits with his gaze alone. Of course, Marko Väinämöinen couldn't back down, even from a fight he couldn't win, so he lifted his head and clenched his fists.

"Don't!" Tino wished that he could get up and break up this fight like he did in the mall, but his injury made this impossible. Instead, he shouted. "Don't fight, damn it!"

"Son, I'm doing what's best for you, this man is dangerous."

"No, you just pissed him off. Back up and let me talk to him." Tino heard his own voice, it sounded alien, as though someone with an identical voice were shouting at him under water. No. He was feeling light headed. He couldn't pass out now, he just couldn't! As Tino's vision faded, he could have sworn that he saw Berwald rushing towards him, shouting his name silently.

XxXx

((I know that this chapter was short, but the next chapter will be uploaded within the next few days. Fun fact: Vikings could have sex with other men, so long as they were on top and produced offspring with a woman. Those who didn't could get into trouble with the law!))


	10. Challenge

_As the leaves tumbled from the trees in a multicolor rain, ice crept across the lake and the rivers. Once navigable water quickly became solid and impenetrable. As frigid winds blew through their hair, the party of Vikings stood examining their unfinished ship. It was too late, simply too late, to continue their journey east. The Finns stood quietly behind them, each of the tongue bound behind their respective partners, discussing plans for the winter. Old Pyry and Ivar stood across from one another, speaking in hushed tones. Taisto simply stood and watched them, his face as sour as ever._

"_I am sorry about your ship." Tino said to Berwald._

"_Don' worry. I was afraid I'd hafta leave you. M' happy." The giant ran a scarred hand over Tino's round cheek. _

_The two were beginning to act like lovers. Tino had finally worked up the courage to tell his Viking companion of his feelings, only to receive a long kiss. They were in the wilderness, and the stars looked like flecks of silver in the sky. Tino vowed never to forget that moment for as long as he lived._

"_But you have to go back." replied Tino, "I'm sure that you have a family to feed." _

"_I 'ave m' little brother, Sven. But he's in th' care of a good friend. One day, I'll bring 'em here. We c'n be a family." _

"_With two men at its head? Berwald, you know I can't bear you any children!" _

"_I don' wan' a woman. Sven c'n carry on th' name."_

"_What about my family? I'm the only remaining man."_

"_Asked yer mother's p'rmssion. She wants ya t' be happy. Even if it's with me."_

"_Maybe we can take in another child. A boy, we can give him my family name."_

"_Now yer thinkin'"_

_Tino placed his hands on Berwald's broad shoulders. "Let me kiss you." _

"_N't here. Ivar knows 'bout my refusal t' marry back home. If he catches us, he'll see red."_

"_I don't care." Tino said, pulling Berwald closer. "He can't stop me from claiming you as my own, now. Besides, why would he be so angry over your family business?"_

"_He's m' uncle."_

XxXx

Tino woke up in the guest bedroom, surrounded by the floral sheets that his mother loved so much. The room was dimly lit and it was dark outside. As a result, Tino could just barely make out three figures standing at his bedside.

"Would you like some soup?" his mother asked.

"Not hungry, Mom." replied Tino, groggily.

"It's in the fridge. One of us can heat you up a bowl if you change your mind."

Berwald, meanwhile, had made his way to the bed and laid himself down next to Tino. "Ya shivered." he whispered into Tino's ear before wrapping an arm around his midsection.

"That Swede sure is _open_." groaned Tino's father.

Tino's mother shot him a dirty look, which sent him backwards, reeling in shame.

"Tino, would you rather share a bed with your boyfriend?" she asked.

"You trust him now?" Tino asked in reply.

"Berwald held you in his arms and let me show him to this room. He put you on the bed and even tucked you in. Are you sure he was actually a Viking?"

"I am….Viking." Berwald said in English, he then pointed to Tino. "Wife."

"I'm your BOYFRIEND, not your wife." said Tino with a groan, "And yes, Mom, he can sleep here with me."

"Don't fuck too loud." said Tino's father under his breath.

"Lukas' brother called earlier." said Tino's mother. "Said Lukas was working on some potion that would make you only have these memory flashbacks as dreams at night. He's also working on some sort of remedy that might make your leg heal faster."

"Thank God."

XxXx

The florescent green numbers on the bedside alarm clock read 12:30, but neither Tino nor Berwald could sleep. They could only talk and kiss. The dam had burst, and now all of those ancient emotions had come flooding back.

"I still can't b'lieve yer alive." said Berwald, between kisses, "Saw ya get stabbed in the heart, b'fore they sealed me away."

Tino moaned quietly as their kisses grew fiery and desperate. He raked his hands through Berwald's choppy blond hair and bit his lower lip. Berwald growled slightly and did the same before breaking the kiss for air.

"There's one thing that's bothering me," said Tino, "why did they kill me and seal you away in some little carving? It just doesn't make sense."

"Still don' remember. Maybe t' punish me more. Maybe they knew I'd c'me out in a difr'nt time, lost f'rever. But wh't they didn' know was that you would be h're."

"You've put a lot of thought into this." said Tino, running a hand up and down the expanse of Berwald's back.

"M' know." One of Berwald's paw like hand found its way to the ever so slight pudge of Tino's stomach. He gave it a light affectionate squeeze.

"Stop. I know I need to lose weight. I've gotten kinda fat over the winter, and spring is coming so I can't hide it under a coat. Please don't rub it in." Tino was rambling, but his not so flat belly was something that he was self conscious about, even if he didn't really fit society's definition of "fat".

"S' cute. Means ya eat well." Berwald replied, squeezing it once more, only to have his hand batted away.

"Stick to kissing me, I like that."

XxXx

The tolling of the bell at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic church echoed through the neighborhood, in turn waking Berwald. He leapt up from the bed and glanced around frantically. Tino, who had been lying awake for several minutes, laughed at his antics.

"Berwald, that happens every hour. Remember hearing it yesterday? It's coming from the church a few blocks away."

"Is it in praise of All-Father Odin?"

"No, today a lot of people here worship another God. Just one, rather than many."

"Like th' Franks?"

"Yes, they worship the same God, in fact."

"Are we in the land of the Franks?"

"No, we live in a land called America. It is far beyond the sea to the west of your land. It took a while to discover."

Berwald just looked out the window and watched the naked branches of the trees toss about in the wind. He apparently couldn't wrap his brain around the idea very well.

Just then, the door opened. Tino's mother, smiling as usual, walked in. "Your father's making you both eggs and bacon."

"Really?" Tino was surprised. Why would his angry homophobic father cook breakfast for him and his boyfriend?

"We'll be right down."

XxXx

When Berwald and Tino walked into the kitchen, they were greeted by the savory smell of bacon. Tino's father stood at the stove, cracking an egg into a coal black skillet.

"How does Berwald like his eggs?" The older man's voice was restrained and showed no hint of emotion.

"He seems to enjoy them scrambled." said Tino.

"Like you do. Sit."

The couple sat down at the round dining table. Tino waited in rapt anticipation for his father to explain himself.

"Look, I'm sorry I overreacted yesterday. I'm sorry about all of those times before, too. Your mother and I have been talking, and I think she may be right. You're an adult now, and you can make your own decisions."

"Wait, really?" Tino was shocked. Since when was his father okay with his homosexuality? Maybe it could be like old times again, before Tino came out of the closet. They could go fishing and shooting again. Maybe they could even drink Kossu together!

"Yes. You're my son, and I love you. I'll let you date this Swede for a while. I know one day you'll come to your senses and find a nice girl, so don't get too attached. I'll break this up myself if it goes on for too long. I just want you to have a good life, son."

"Dad, I'm gay. I'll always be gay. I'm never marrying a woman, period." Tino said, trying his best to mask his anger and disappointment. "I'm still your son, and I'm still a man. Hey, maybe the three of us could go fishing together. I bet Berwald's almost as good as you are."

Tino's father froze and loudly dropped his spatula. Stomping, he left the room.

XxXx

((I know, I said I would update in a few days. That turned into a couple of weeks. Sorry about that.

Notes:

*Berwald lived around the early 800s, which pre-dated Ericson's discovery of North America.

*The Frankish Kingdom was a very large empire in what is today Central Europe.))


	11. Secret

For days after what came to be known in the Väinämöinen household as the "Eggs and Bacon Incident", Tino's father became more withdrawn, coming out of the shed only to eat, sleep or soak in the sauna he had built beside it. Tino's mother tried to fill the strange void by sitting at Tino's side, together with Berwald. As opposed to her husband, Tarja had taken a liking to Berwald, and taught him English words whenever she had the chance.

On Thursday, there was a sudden thunderstorm, a typical weather event in the Ohio River Valley. As a result of the heavy downpour and relentless lightning, Marco Väinämöinen was forced to stay inside with his family. His self imposed isolation, however, still held, as he spent the day in the basement, drafting designs for future projects.

Tino spent most of his day in front of the TV, watching the uninteresting daytime programming and wishing that Lukas would hurry up already with his remedy. All wasn't lost. He had Berwald and his mother to chat with.

"Tino, do you think I should enter some of my paintings in the art fair this fall?" his mother said as she added highlights to her acrylic still life of an orange.

"Yeah, you've always wanted to do it. Now that you're retired, you should go for it!" Tino replied, craning his neck to see his mother's work.

"If there's one thing I like most about being retired," she said, "It's the fact that I get to paint like this every day."

Berwald, meanwhile, watched her intently, leaning towards the canvas and squinting. It was clear that he wanted to say something, but didn't know how.

"What call th's, in English."

"It's a painting." Tino's mother replied, as slowly and carefully as she could.

"She has, painting." Berwald said, weighed down by his heavy accent.

Tino nodded, "That's right, a painting. Why are you squinting like that?"

Berwald switched back to Old Norse "There's a p'rblem with m' eyes. Can't see things that 'r too far away."

"Aha! You're nearsighted, you need glasses." Tino exclaimed. Now that he thought about it, he realized that perhaps Berwald's intimidating narrow eyes were caused by having to constantly squint.

"Are glasses th' things Eduard wears on 'is eyes."

"Yes, for the same reason, actually. I'm so excited, Berwald! You'll look so handsome with glasses!"

"Should I make an appointment with the optometrist for tomorrow? He'll need to have his glasses for his English lessons on Saturday."

"Good idea, mom."

XxXx

Obtaining Berwald's glasses turned out to be quite an ordeal. If it weren't for Tino coming along in his wheelchair and translating for Berwald, then the appointment would have been a complete disaster. The eye doctor, a nice lady named Tammy, quickly became impatient with Berwald's antics. The machinery terrified Berwald, and Tino had to restrain the Viking several times. At least they didn't have to dilate his pupils. They apparently had a new machine for that, one that blew swift puffs of air into people's eyes. Berwald hated it.

At the end of the day, however, Berwald came home with a pair of rectangular, wire framed glasses. He gawked at his surroundings, relishing his newfound ability to see things clearly.

"These glasses, I like 'em." Berwald said with a smile.

Tino sat up from the couch slightly, running a hand over his boyfriend's high cheekbones and touching the cold frames of the glasses. "You look so…..nice. They really open up your eyes." he said, blushing. "I mean, you were always good-looking, this is just new."

Berwald leaned forward and kissed him deeply.

XxXx

On Saturday, there was a brisk knock at the door. Tino's mother put down her painting and rushed to answer it.

Yekaterina's arms were loaded with all sorts of books, which she held against her ample bosom. Her short, ash blond hair was held back with a canary yellow headband.

"Oh, Tarja. It's nice to see you again." She chirped, "How are the paintings coming along?"

"Really well! I'm thinking of entering them in the St. James Art Fair!"

"Oh, I'll have to stop by your tent and buy something. That's really exciting."

"Come in, your student is waiting in the living room."

Berwald sat in a navy blue armchair, adjusting his new glasses. He gazed up at Yekaterina and nodded.

Tino's face was illuminated with a smile. If he could stand up and greet his friend, Yekaterina, he would, but it was obviously impossible. Instead, he opted for a seated greeting.

"Kat, how's it going? Should we move to the kitchen table?"

"No, Tino," she replied, "We can do it here. It's much cozier." Yekaterina then turned back to face Berwald, smiling and sitting on the carpeted floor just in front of his chair. "Hello Berwald. Eduard and Tino have told me so much about you."

"'Lo" Berwald said. "I learn English?"

"Yes. You've already learned quite a bit, it seems. Why don't we learn about the Alphabet, first? It's our version of runes!"

XxXx

There was a slight chill in the air that night, but the almost metallic chirp of crickets suggested that the warmth of spring was slowly beginning to take hold. Tino was happy to get some fresh air, and grateful to Berwald, who had carried him out to the patio. Despite the cool weather, Tino felt toasty warm. Berwald held him in his lap, his large frame enveloping Tino's body.

"Berwald, you're just like a living blanket, you know that?" Tino chuckled, resting a full cheek on the Viking's broad chest.

"M' glad yer warm." Berwald said, his lips brushing the top of Tino's head as he spoke.

Tino turned to face Berwald, and closed in for a kiss. Having been apart for centuries, the couple couldn't help but kiss as often as possible. Not that Tino was complaining. Kissing Berwald felt perfect, far too perfect. Berwald knew exactly how to make Tino positively melt. Like a sorcerer, he knew exactly how to summon breathy moans and sighs from Tino's throat. A hand stroking here, a tongue sweeping there, and the world around him ceased to exist. Perfect. So perfect.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Bad time?" the voice of Tino's mother pierced through the brief moment of passion. Tino and Berwald broke their kiss and turned around to see her.

She was wearing a salmon pink, long sleeved nightgown, but was still shivering slightly. Was it the cold? Was she nervous? The constant wandering of her eyes and wringing of her hands suggested the latter.

"Is cold. You sad?" Berwald seemed to be able to read her plight, but at the same time, wasn't fluent enough to express himself.

Tino's mother forced out a trembling chuckle. "No Berwald, I'm not sad. I'm just about to say something I shouldn't."

"What's going on, Mom?" asked Tino, "It's late, and even Dad is asleep. Is something wrong?"

"Tino, I've decided that I'm going to explain your father's behavior to you."

Tino saw red. He had been holding in his anger the best he could ever since he had come home, and he couldn't do so much longer. "Voi vittu jumalauta!* There's nothing to explain! He's a homophobic asshole who's mad his precious son isn't as totally and completely straight as he is." The words flew from his lips like scalding water from a geyser, but they needed to be said, even if they made Berwald and his mother cringe.

Tino's mother took a deep breath and sat in a patio chair beside him and Berwald. "Tino, you're wrong. Your father isn't 'totally and completely straight'."

"I-I beg your pardon?"

"You're father is, I suppose, what you would call bisexual. Obviously, he married me, but has been with a man before."

"Then what does he see wrong with me?" by now, Tino was utterly and completely confused.

"Nothing. He just doesn't want you to get hurt. You look confused; I'll have to tell you the story."

Tino nodded and gripped Berwald's hand.

"Back when you're father was going to the University of Turku, well, before we started dating, he had a boyfriend. A tall, blond fellow named Jukka. They were inseparable, kind of like you and Berwald."

"What happened?"

"Hush Tino, you're acting like a child. This isn't a bedtime story, you know. Well, when your father and I were young, very few people accepted, well, homosexuality. I'm afraid I don't know all the details, but apparently Jukka had something of a macho image. He dumped your father without warning, and proceeded to out him to all of his friends. Many of them didn't feel comfortable with the idea of hanging around a queer man, and never spoke to him again."

Tino was speechless. What a horrible thing to do to someone, particularly someone who was still in the closet! No wonder his father was wary of his relationships. But his feelings of sympathy for his father were still conflicted by his anger. If this were true, why hadn't his father told him about it?

"Why? Why did he keep all of that a secret from me? He knows I'm gay. I would've liked to know what his deal was."

"That, Tino, is a question that only he can answer."

XxXx

((Wow, thank you all for reading this story and being patient with me. I'll try to update faster. Anyways, I forgot to say that Sven, Berwald's little brother mentioned in one of the flashbacks, is supposed to be Ladonia.

It seems that Berwald has finally gotten his glasses. And yes, the evil air puffing machine he encountered at the eye doctor is a real thing. I have to deal with it every time I go to get my eyes re-checked. Not fun!

Because this story is set in Louisville, I just HAD to add in a random storm. As much as I love the area, the Ohio River Valley is really rainy. I remember storms seemingly appearing out of nowhere when I was a kid!

XxXx

*Voi vittu jumalauta is Finnish for "Oh fuck, goddamn it!"))


	12. Passion

"Are you sure it'll taste okay?" asked Tino, rolling a little bottle of black, viscous liquid across his palm.

"I can't make any promises, but it'll really reduce your recovery time after you get those damned pins out of your leg tomorrow." Lukas sat across from Tino, one leg crossed over the other.

"Thank God for that," said Tino, "I read online that it can take FOREVER for fractures like mine to heal!"

"You're right. Too bad I can't just heal you immediately, but hey, magic has limits. You're leg should be as good as new in about a month." Lukas smiled slightly.

"Oh, I can't WAIT to go back to work. I've missed taking pictures. It's pretty much my passion." Tino became so excited that he accidentally banged his injured leg against the side of the couch. He clutched it tightly and winced. "God damn it!"

"Careful Tino, I don't want you to make it worse. Damn, Berwald must have his hands full trying to protect you. You always were a clumsy bastard."

"Lukas, I'm not clumsy. And I don't need protecting." as fond as Tino was of Lukas, there were times when his bluntness was an issue.

"Suit yourself. Where is Berwald, anyway?"

"Napping." laughed Tino, "He's turned into a giant cat."

Lukas chuckled and checked his phone. "Damn, Mathias has sent me, like, a million texts. They're getting progressively more lovey-dovey, too. He knows how much I hate sap."

"Mathias is Mathias." said Tino, "You remember those awful poems he used to write you in high school?"

"Don't. Remind. Me." Lukas said through gritted teeth.

"When he stopped by to visit me the other day, he kept talking about you. Oh, admit it, you guys love each other."

"Well, I believe that's why we're in a romantic and sexual relationship."

"Too much information, Lukas!"

"Speaking of sex, have you and Berwald…."

Tino blushed. "N-no. Besides, is it really practical to screw with a broken leg?"

"Point taken."

"You have no filter, do you?" Tino shook his head and sighed.

"I say what I want," said Lukas, "even when other people don't want to hear it. Well, I have to go. I don't want Mathias to have a heart attack."

"See you around, then."

"One more thing. I don't have the memory elixir ready yet, but I'll get it to you as soon as I can."

XxXx

A loud knock at the bedroom door interrupted Tino's peaceful, dreamless sleep. Groggily, he rolled over. "Go away." he grunted.

"Son, get out of bed. Surgery is today." The voice behind the door undoubtedly belonged to his father. Even though he and Tino were on speaking terms once again, he wasn't sure if he was in the mood to face his father first thing in the morning. Especially since they hadn't resolved their disagreement. "The Swede is all doped up on Versed and it's about time to go."

Tino opened his eyes a crack. "Versed?"

"You know, for his medical exam."

Now Tino remembered. Lukas had contacted Dr. Arthur Kirkland, a physician specializing in medical cases involving magic, to examine Berwald and give him all of the shots he might need. The Versed would keep him from being frightened and going on a rampage.

"Okay, fine. But could you please help me into my chair, dad?"

"It's downstairs. I'll have to pick you up."

Great, his father would have to carry him, like a baby.

XxXx

An encounter with a calm, sleepy Viking and a short car ride later, Tino found himself caught in a whirlwind of hospital activity. First, there were papers and waivers of all varieties to sign and return to the secretary, ensuring that all would go well both legally and medically. Then there was preparation to enter the O.R. Tino was stripped down and clothed in a flimsy paper gown. They attached sensors to his shivering body, added tubes, and inserted a pronged IV into his arm.

Not long after being bombarded with the glaring silver lights of the O.R., Tino felt the anesthesia take effect, and fell into the void of unconsciousness.

XxXx

_The stars in the sky shone like silver coins glittering up from the sandy floor of a muddy lake. The moon cast its metal glow on the couple standing in the clearing, giving them long and regal shadows. _

_Tino and Berwald had waited for this concealing darkness to roll over the village before they stole off into the woods for their secret wedding. A wedding between men._

_Due to the gender of the two grooms, it wasn't a wedding that held any legal clout. There was no bride price or feast. There was merely the two of them, with only Freyja herself as witness._

_Beneath the moon and star light, Tino and Berwald exchanged swords. Tino's was the most valuable possession that he owned, a single item that his father had left behind after his untimely death. It was to change hands now, to be given to a man that Tino loved and trusted like no other. Berwald's sword bore a similar back story. It had been passed from father to son for generations, and was being handed to another man yet again. A husband. A lover and best friend. Next, of course, came the rings. They were simple and unconventional. Berwald had carved them of birch wood just for the occasion. They slipped them onto one another's fingers. Vows were whispered into the night in hushed tones._

_Now, all formalities were out of the way. The two lovers, bonded by choice, simply stared at one another, waiting. It was Berwald who made the first move. He cupped Tino's soft, round cheek in his warm hand and moved in for the kill. Lit only by the metal moonlight, they kissed passionately, holding onto one another as if they would soon be flung apart._

XxXx

Thankfully, the surgery was an outpatient procedure, and after a brief stay in the recovery room, Tino was free to go. Berwald had made it successfully through his medical procedure as well. He approached Tino, and proudly displayed a certificate and a folder of medical information. He couldn't read English well, so he didn't know that the certificate granted him special U.S. citizenship as a Magically Displaced Person, but he seemed to understand that it would make life in a strange place more possible.

During the car ride home, Tino decided to take the medicine that Lukas had given him. It was flavorless, oily and went down like tar. Tino was thankful that he only had to take one dose.

He was back at his parents' house soon afterwards. Tino let his drowsiness and dull, throbbing pain take hold of his body, and took a long nap.

XxXx

_They didn't want to consummate their marriage in Tino's bed. That would mean waiting, something that neither of the men was willing to do. Instead the retired to the forest floor, kissing and grinding. Tino could feel just how hard Berwald was; his erection struggled desperately at the course cloth of his trousers. Tino's body wasn't faring any better. _

"_Yer eager. Look how stiff ya are." Berwald gasped between kisses. The warrior thrust his hips harder, for added effect. _

_Tino let out a loud, unmanly moan. "Please, let's just start. Now."_

_Berwald smiled slightly and unbuckled Tino's belt, repeating the action with his own. He tossed the two strips of cow hide aside, out of the way. They fell to the earth with a pleasant plink of buckle against buckle, a teasing reminder that soon, man would rut against man. The eager newlyweds made short work of the rest of their clothes, and soon felt the chill of the North Wind against their bare flesh. _

_Tino smiled up at Berwald, who had him pinned playfully to the forest floor. He lifted his arm and ran a hand down his Viking husband's back, feeling the rough hills and valleys of battle scars. _

"_Is this all mine?"he asked._

"_Yes, and yer body's m'ne." Berwald practically growled, moving his lips down to worship what was scarred and muscular but simultaneously supple and soft. To Berwald, Tino had the perfect body. It was so unlike his own, yet so full of hidden strength._

_In spite of their eagerness, they decided to slow down and put to use their senses of touch and taste. They exchanged kisses and caresses like gifts. Moans, oaths and praises spilled fourth from their mouths like water from a geyser. They marveled at one another's perfections and imperfections until their steamy touches and gropes reached their most logical conclusion._

_Tino groaned disapprovingly when Berwald rolled off of him to get a bottle of watery oil from his bag, which was resting in a tree across the clearing. Berwald returned shortly, and pressed his large hand between Tino's shivering thighs._

"_Spread 'em a little." he said, and Tino didn't even have to think twice about complying. He soon felt his inner legs being coated with a warm, slippery liquid. Tino glanced up at Berwald, who was oiling himself with one hand and moaning at the friction._

"_Ber, are you going to keep playing with yourself, or are you going to take me." as he said these devilishly dirty words, Tino beckoned to Berwald with his index finger and smirked. In less than a second, Berwald was thrusting between his thighs._

_It was the most perfect feeling in the world, having the one he loved so close to him, lighting his every nerve on fire. Tino found himself making noised that he had never heard himself make and they only increased in volume as the lovemaking grew more intense._

_Berwald, though usually silent, was surprisingly vocal. Tino swore he felt his body groan under the weight of all the praises grunted in his direction. But the moans were best of all. They forced their way from Berwald's lungs and rang out like battle cries. No, neither of them cared how much sound they made. The pure, raw feeling and pleasure was all that mattered._

_Then Tino's body became tight as a taught bow string. His loins were on fire, and he felt his release rock his body. Soon after, Berwald too was spent, and they collapsed together, a boneless, satisfied mess._

((A/N: Now you know why this fanfic is rated M. Implied intercrural sex. I know the language may be a bit cheesy, but I hope it doesn't read like something out of a horrible romance novel. MOAR inappropriateness to come, though it won't get overly explicit.

I hadn't realized at the time of writing this that pins were to be removed AFTER the bone healed COMPLETELY and was under the impression that they were removed after a few weeks and the cast would do the rest. I referenced this in several chapters, so I believe it's too late to edit it. Suspend your disbelief for me, dear readers, lol.

And yes, Jewish Hospital is a real place, and Ludwig apparently works there. Interestingly, it's a Jewish and Catholic run hospital.))


	13. Rings of Wood

((Hello everybody, I'm sorry that the wait for this chapter was so long. I spent all of July studying in Berlin and the past couple of months settling back into college (and life back home in America), so I've been busy. Looking back at the old chapters in this story, I can't help but cringe a bit. I've improved a great deal in the past year, thanks mainly to my creative writing professors, particularly the one I have now. He is harsh, but has really helped me to see the silly mistakes that I tend to make and to stop making them. Oh, and on a technical note, I mixed up the Optomap machine with the air puff machine in chapter 10. At the time of writing it, it had been a while since I had a comprehensive eye exam. I may go back and fix that later. Well, that's enough of my self indulgent author's notes. Here's the fic.))

XxXxXx

As Lukas promised, the medicine that he made sped up Tino's recovery time. It took him two days to get off of the pain pills and out of bed post surgery. An even more surprising development occurred in Tino's mobility: he found that with the help of crutches he could get up and walk. This excited Tino to no end, and three days after his surgery, he was rarely ever off his feet. In fact, he was up so much that his mother had to force him to sit down on numerous occasions.

The kitchen table was coated with flowers from visiting friends, replacing the old ones that they had given Tino when he had first fractured his leg. Berwald was fond of the flowers, and Tino would often catch him rubbing their delicate petals with the tips of his massive fingers. It was moments like these when it was hard to picture him as a Viking warrior, in fact, Berwald seemed to be the type of guy who might run a daycare or volunteer at an animal shelter. What had prompted him to go on those dangerous journeys to trade and sometimes to do battle? Tino wanted to ask, but at the same time, didn't want to offend his boyfriend. But he was beginning to wonder what the big man was up to; Berwald had developed a habit of disappearing from the bed for hours at a time each night and returning smelling like wood chips. During the day, Tino would have been more likely to follow him, but this happened late at night, and only woke him from his heavy sleep halfway. Tino never was one to get out of bed if he could help it. As a result, the memory of this strange behavior only partially registered in his memory. Nonetheless, it nagged him.

XxXxXx

That weekend, when Yekaterina came, so did Eduard. As per usual, the two hung out and talked about whatever came to mind. The conversation soon turned into a series of questions about the "Epic Love Affair between the Photographer and the Viking".

"Are you guys, like, official?" asked Eduard, scooping a handful of cashew nuts out of the blue Moomin bowl on the kitchen counter.

"Eduard, really," Tino said, "what's with this sudden fascination with my love life?"

"Well, we are best friends." said Eduard.

"Point taken. I guess we could be considered official."

"That's not what Facebook says! Look, "Tino Väinämöinen. Relationship Status: Single."

"Ed, Facebook doesn't mean anything." said Tino, laughing. "You sound like a teenage girl, or Feliks."

"But you don't want creepy bastards like Ivan hitting on you." said Eduard. He took a lemon out of a nearby bowel of fruit and held it over his nose. "Hello my Sunflower, let's go on a date."

Tino laughed even harder, "Ed, stop making fun of your brother-in-law. He's just a bit socially awkward."

Eduard kept the lemon in place, "Oh, so you would like to go out with a big-nosed weirdo like me? Come, I shall take you away from that silly Berwald."

"No, no I love Berwald. Okay, Ed, this is getting kinda creepy." Tino raised his pale eyebrows.

"Until you change your relationship status, you will be mine!" Eduard said, tugging on Tino's arm for emphasis.

"Fine. I'll boot up the Facebook app on my phone!"

XxXxXx

Soon after the Facebook incident, Yekaterina and Berwald emerged from behind the dark, wooden living room door and walked over to Eduard and Tino. Yekaterina was grinning brightly and Berwald seemed to have something in his pocket. Their lesson was over.

"Tino," Yekaterina said, "Berwald has a gift for you."

Tino kissed Berwald's cheek, "What do you have for me, honey?"

Berwald grinned and pulled a wooden box from his pocket. It was carved with intricate tree branch designs, and was only half the size of Tino's palm. "Made all o' this fer you."

Tino picked up the box, taking care to keep his crutches steady. He pulled off the lid, revealing two wooden rings. They were just like the ones from his dream! Tino stopped breathing. Were those tears streaking down his cheeks? Berwald's eyes looked moist as well.

"The smaller one's fer you. Want me ta put it on?"

"Yes." Tino's voice barely left the confines of his mouth. He put the wooden box down on the counter and put the rings into Berwald's palm.

As the couple slipped on their rings, Yekaterina smiled at Eduard, who took her hand. "They're so cute, aren't they Eduard." she said.

Eduard nodded and smirked "Not as cute as me, though."

Tino, meanwhile, had buried his face into Berwald's chest, trying as hard as he could to stop himself from sobbing. He had dropped his crutches to the floor and relied on Berwald's large, sturdy frame for support. Tino felt moisture in his hair and realized that the Viking too was crying. It had finally sunk in. After centuries apart, they could be together again. Even though he had only learned of his past life months ago, Tino still felt the relief and the explosion of tender passion that a reunited husband should feel. They even had wedding rings again! What could possibly be wrong with this moment?

"So _that's _who's been using my carving tools and not putting them away." shouted an all too familiar voice.

Well, the moment was wonderful while it lasted. Sure enough, Tino's father stood just paces away from them. In his gnarled hand, he held Berwald's box.

XxXxXx

((Dun dun dun! Stay tuned for an exciting father-son confrontation in the next chapter! Tino's dad sure loves to ruin people's romantic moments. I'll bet he was a cockblock to his buddies in his younger years. What a troll.

I hope Eduard wasn't too OOC. He's really hard to write.

I'm sorry that this was such a short chapter. As per usual, please let me know if you find any errors. I'm an idiot at editing and revising my own work.))


	14. Confrontation

"Dad!" Tino shouted as he pulled away from Berwald.

"I've been finding my old knives lying around and I thought I'd just forgotten to put them away, but now I see the culprit." Tino's father pointed a finger at Berwald.

"Sir," Yekaterina said, "please understand that he wasn't trying to be rude. He doesn't really get modern social norms."

"I know that," said Tino's father, "and I'm not angry."

"What?" Tino shouted. He'd been expecting his father to explode. Eduard turned to him and shrugged.

Tino's father moved a bit closer to Berwald, "I didn't know you enjoyed woodcarving." he said.

"Enjoyed it since was y'ng." the big man replied.

"The craftsmanship here is wonderful. I love the detail in that box. Look at those rings. Look how evenly shaped they are. Tino, did you know he was that good?" Tino's father had become excited.

"I had some idea." Tino replied, thinking back to his dreams of the past.

"Son, why didn't you tell me about this?" Tino's father asked.

"Well," said Tino with a groan, "You wouldn't talk to me for a while."

Tino's father bit his lip, "Fair enough."

XxXxXx

Berwald and Tino's father went to the backyard workshop together and stayed there until long after Yekaterina and Eduard had gone home. Tino eventually decided that while his boyfriend and his father bonded over wood carving, he would help out his mother with dinner. He wasn't much of a cook, but leaving her to do it all by herself made him feel bad. So Tino, propped his crutches against the wall, took a seat on a tall, wooden stool and began peeling potatoes.

"Berwald and your father have been in there for quite a long time." Tino's mother said as she brought a pot of water to a boil.

"Yeah, who would've thought that he'd suddenly accept Ber after he caught him messing with his tools?" said Tino

"Your father isn't a bad guy, you know. And hey, at least Berwald used the hand carving tools instead of the power tools." said Tino's mother.

"I doubt he would even know what the power tools were. And yeah, I know Dad isn't a bad guy, but why the hell did he lie to me and treat me like shit?"

"Tino, your father can do some foolish things, but he's your father. You have to go talk to him."

Tino groaned, "You're right, I guess."

XxXxXx

Tino began to sweat as he approached the old, red, wooden, shed. He could hear the high pitched wine of his father's buzz saw echoing inside. As he leaned on his crutches and pushed open the door, the sound grew louder. Tino's father looked on as Berwald used the saw to cut a thin board in half at the beaten up table in the center of the room. Berwald's large hands were shaking a bit, but he seemed to be in control of the device. Well, he would have to get the hang of using power tools at some point. Tino just didn't want to have to watch. It was too nerve wracking and dangerous looking.

"Dad," Tino said, trying to speak over the saw. Tino's father walked over to Berwald and showed him the off switch on the device. The buzzing stopped.

"What is it, son?" Tino's father asked.

"Is it okay if I talk to you for a bit? Alone?" Tino asked.

"Sure, that's fine." Tino's father said.

Tino then walked over to Berwald, "Ber, I'm gonna talk to my dad for a bit. Go inside and keep my mom company, I'll catch up later."

"Okay," Berwald said, kissing Tino's cheek, "I'll see ya later." He then left the shed, carefully shutting the door behind him.

Tino and his father were alone.

After clearing his throat, Tino's father was the first to speak. "I taught Berwald how to use that saw. He was really scared at first. It was kind of funny. Don't worry; I made sure he didn't get hurt."

"Yeah?" Tino replied, slightly frustrated at the awkward small talk.

"He seems to enjoy learning new things, though." Tino's father said, scratching his head.

"That's Berwald, alright." Tino replied.

"Now, what did you want to talk to me about?" Tino's father said, even though he probably already knew.

"Why didn't you tell me?" asked Tino.

"Tell you about what?" Tino's father backed up.

"College. Being outed. The whole fucking reason that you were a bastard about me seeing other men." Tino shouted, all at once.

"You are my son," said Tino's father, "don't you DARE talk to me that way."

"I know that," Tino said, gripping his crutches and inching forward, "but I want answers, wouldn't you?"

Tino's father was silent and his gaze was steely. For several minutes, the two men just stood facing one another. Finally, Tino's father spoke, "Looks like your mother told you the story. Son, I'm sorry. I was wrong."

Tino loosened his grip on the crutches, "Thank you, but I still want to know why you acted the way you did."

Tino's father sighed, "I didn't want you to get hurt. You remember the story, what happened to me. As a father, I couldn't bear to let that happen to you. Growing up anything but straight is hard, people treat you like shit. The kids in school used to tease you enough as it was. I can't tell you how many times you came home crying because some little punk made fun of your accent or called you a faggot. I hoped that you'd at least grow up into a normal man with a wife. Bullying is supposed to stop when you get older, but you know as well as I do that loving another man turns some grown adults into stupid fucking children again."

Tino couldn't believe it, his father had said more at that moment than he had for a long time. The old man's eyes were beginning to look wet, too!

Tino walked closer to his father, "Dad, if you support me, I can let go of my crutches and give you a hug."

For the first time in weeks, Tino's father smiled at him. He grabbed hold of Tino and pulled him close. The crutches clattered to the floor.

"I'll always hug you, son. Always."

XxXxXx

((A/N: Alternate Title: Tino Resolves His Daddy Issues

awildfangirlappeared. deviantart favourites/ 44241988#/ d5k5dch

The lovely fablespinner made a fanart for for this fic! Just paste the link above (without the spaces) into your URL bar. Seriously, check out her gallery. It's full of great stuff.


	15. Home

"That looks like everything." said Tino as he placed a suitcase onto the all too familiar oatmeal colored carpet of his apartment.

Berwald grunted in affirmative. He had brought in three suitcases at once, in spite of Tino's protest that he had use of his leg again and could, in fact, carry his own luggage. That was just Berwald's personality, it seemed. The big man had an almost religious reverence for Tino's body and its safety. It would be annoying if Tino weren't so smitten.

Tino's neck was hit with a hot puff of air and a lingering touch of chapped lips. The sound that came out of his mouth was something between a startled gasp and a satisfied moan. Tino moved his hand to catch in Berwald's short, flax colored hair.

"We just got in the door, Ber!" Tino said with a voice that was sprinkled gently with laughter.

Berwald lifted his mouth to the edge of Tino's ear. "Can' help it." he said before going back to Tino's neck.

It was then that Tino decided that the awkward timing didn't matter at all. The suitcases could wait: his pants were feeling far too restrictive at the moment. If the poking that he felt against his lower back was any indication, Berwald was having the same problem.

"Ber, may I turn around please?" Tino hoped that he didn't sound desperate. He had waited so long for his body to be up to the task of love making, and to be frank, hadn't been in bed with a man in a very long time.

As he turned around to face Berwald, Tino decided that the Viking was the only man that he wanted to do this with. He wrapped his arms around Berwald's wide shoulders as he felt a rough hand lift his chin. Berwald's face was so close that he and Tino were sharing breath. All at once, Berwald shut his arctic eyes and brought their lips together. Now, without the awkward possibility of family members walking in on them, Tino and Berwald could be as passionate as they wanted. Tino sank his teeth into Berwald's lower lip just hard enough to let the giant know what he wanted. Berwald parted his lips and the kiss became more heated and intense than before. Tino's hands had migrated up to Berwald's head and made a mess of his hair. Berwald's much larger hands gripped Tino's rear, pulling him even closer than before. Tino began moving his hips in a circular motion against Berwald's. The giant then broke the kiss and pushed Tino against the nearest wall.

"Ouch." Tino hissed as his back made contact with said wall.

Berwald frowned, "Didn' mean ta' hurt ya'."

Tino reached up caress one of Berwald's cheek, "Don't apologize, if anything, it turns me on that you're being so dominant." Tino smiled, and he imagined that Berwald could probably detect the wicked smolder hidden beneath it.

Berwald broke into a full, mischievous grin, a rare sight, and hoisted Tino over one of his massive shoulders. "How d' ya like that?" he said, chuckling a bit at Tino's startled squeak.

After recovering from the shock of being hoisted up so suddenly, Tino laughed and replied, "Get that Rite Aid bag and carry me to the bedroom."

Berwald walked over to the kitchen table and pulled a white tube of KY Jelly from the bag. Tino had stopped and purchased it on the way back to the apartment, knowing full well that it would be needed very soon.

Thankfully, the bedroom itself was only a few feet away from the kitchen.

XxXx

Tino let loose a loud groan. He looked up at Berwald, whose cold blue eyes were staring intensely into his. Berwald was moving harder and faster with every passing second. Berwald was working hard: his muscles rippled and flexed with every movement. Tino felt the fire in his belly grow hotter as Berwald stretched and pleasured him oh-so-perfectly. It was a good thing that he and Berwald lived alone, because Tino couldn't keep his moans quiet.

Mid thrust, Berwald brought his lips to Tino's ear. "Ya like that?" he asked. Tino could feel him smirk against the shell of his ear.

Tino opened his mouth, unsure of whether he would be able to give a coherent answer. He felt air force its way out of his lungs and make a noise that sounded like "God yes!" He was so hard, so close, just a little more…..

Berwald's body went ridged. The stoic man threw back his head and let out a loud moan and thrusted a few more times before falling slack.

Tino wasn't far behind. The pleasure that Berwald had given him peaked and exploded. It wasn't long until they both stopped moving.

The two lay panting for a moment or two, their foreheads touching. Tino stroked the expanse of Berwald's back and planted a kiss on his forehead.

"That was wonderful." he said.

Berwald kissed Tino's lips before rolling off and grabbing a handful of tissues out of the blue box on the wooden nightstand. It looked like he was going to clean them both off before slipping into an afternoon nap.

Tino felt his eyelids drooping. He wasn't surprised to be tired, Berwald had given it to him hard and there was no doubt that his muscles would be sore the next day. But something wasn't right. The room was fading and he couldn't feel his body any more. A vision was coming.

XxXx

_The spring sun chased away the darkness of winter, as well as all of the ice. The glittering crust that sat atop the sea for so many months began to dissolve, making it possible for the great, dragon headed ship to take Berwald far away. _

_ When the day finally came, there was a great commotion. Men, women, and children, some of them sobbing at the loss of their temporary foreign family members, helped the Vikings pack the ship for a long journey. On a small cliff overlooking the water, some distance away from the others, Tino and Berwald stood face to face._

_ "Promise me that you will return, my husband." Tino said, shuffling his feet against the pebbled ground. _

_ Berwald pulled Tino close. Their hearts beat together. "I will, same t'me next y're." After pressing a quick, soft kiss to Tino's lips, he added, "I promise." _

_ Tino brushed a tear from his cheek. "Bring the little one, too. My sisters will love a new playmate."_

_ "I will bring Sven. When I r'turn, I will be here to st'y. Forever." _

_ The lovers leaned in and shared the most intense kiss either of them had ever experienced. After they broke the kiss, and Berwald turned to leave, Tino grabbed hold of the back of Berwald's indigo tunic. He said nothing, but his violet eyes were sparkling with moisture. Berwald gripped Tino's hand and gently pulled it off. He then knelt down and kissed it. _

_ "I promise." he said before going down to the shore to join the rest of his comrades. _

_ As Berwald's boat floated away, Tino could do nothing but watch the great wooden dragon's head disappear over the curved horizon. _

_ He would have to wait one more year before he could hold Berwald again._

XxXx

"W'fe, wake up." Berwald's deep, rich voice awoke Tino. He opened his eyes to see his handsome husband leaning over him, cleaning his motionless body with a warm wash cloth.

"Berwald," Tino said, "How long was I asleep?"

""bout twenty minutes." the big man replied, "Ya need a glass o' water?"

"No, I'm fine." replied Tino. He wrapped his arm around Berwald's neck. He was glad to be able to touch him.

Tino then pulled Berwald down and kissed him harder than he thought possible. He was there, tangible and achingly beautiful.

They broke their kiss. "Don't EVER leave me again!" cried Tino.

Berwald frowned. "You remembered." He stroked a strand of sweaty hair out of Tino's eye.

"Yes," replied Tino, "and you do too?"

"'s one of the memories that's intact. Could never forget havin' t' leave ya."

"And you won't have to leave me ever again." said Tino.

XxXx

The following day was Monday, meaning that Tino had to return to work. Tino's father had called the previous night, asking if Berwald could stay and do some woodcarving with him. Tino, of course, was happy to drop Berwald off that morning. It was nice for Tino to see that the man that his father had initially tried to scare off had become his friend. On top of that, neighbors had begun to take notice of Berwald's craftsmanship and abilities. His parents' neighbor from down the street, a Japanese man named Kiku Honda, had commissioned a small coffee table for his living room. It seemed that Berwald was on the verge of starting what could be considered a small business. Since Tino didn't have the proper carving tools in his apartment, he was happy that his father was willing to lend Berwald some of his. He was even more pleased to see that Berwald was starting to assimilate into his new environment.

Elizabeta beamed the moment Tino entered the studio. Her petite hands flew as she asked him numerous questions, many of which revolved around Tino's health and "Big, Blond Boy Toy". In spite of his boss' exuberant antics, Tino managed to get back to work without a hitch.

XxXx

Before he could press the unlock button on his key fob, Tino noticed Emil standing in front of his car. They boy was breathing heavily and held a small, blue bottle in his hands.

"Is that the memory elixir?" asked Tino, hoping, for the sake of his sanity, that it was.

Emil nodded, and his silver hair bobbed with his head. "Yep, take it." he said.

Tino grinned and took the bottle. "What's Lukas doing?" he asked, hoping for an explanation as to why his friend hadn't come along.

"Mathias, that's what, er, who he's doing."

"No wonder you're out of breath!" said Tino, laughing, "You had to run away from your embarrassing brother. Wanna go with me to pick up Berwald?"

Emil shuffled backwards, "No, thank you. I'm afraid I have someplace to go."

It was then that Tino realized that he was old enough for a seventeen-year-old boy to deem him "uncool".

XxXx

((A/N: Hello everybody! Sorry about the long wait! I'm pleased to tell you all that this fanfic is just three chapters away from completion! Thank you all so much for your continued readership! Barring any changes to my schedule, I should have this thing done within the next two weeks.

On a side note, the alternate title for this chapter is "That Awkward Moment when You Literally Pass Out After Sex".))


	16. Change

When the warmth of summer began to dissipate and give way to fall's chill, Berwald's mastery of the English language improved. While he had not yet achieved perfect fluency, he was able to carry on detailed conversations. As a result, Yekaterina decided to teach Berwald more than just linguistic skills. She would come by their apartment with armloads of textbooks on a great variety of subjects. Berwald devoured them. His favorites were the ones on history and modern technology. Slowly, he was catching up and learning about the current world and its complex inner workings. Tino was happy to see that Berwald enjoyed books so much, and would often take him to book stores. There, Berwald could spend a portion of his earnings from selling his furniture and carvings.

When Tino would come home from work and Berwald was not over at his father's house carving, he would find his boyfriend sitting at the kitchen table reading. Sometimes, it was the massive grey pages of The Courier-Journal that Berwald turned with nimble fingers. On other occasions, he would be absorbed in a book about a specific topic, such as the Protestant Reformation or Space Travel. Novels seemed to intrigue Berwald as well, even if they were quite different from the spoken epic poetry of his time.

On the fourth of October, Berwald and Tino found themselves sitting under one of the many white tents that were nestled along the roads between ancient trees and Victorian homes. The couple had decided to divide their tent in half in order to display their wares separately. Tino's side was hung with a variety of photographs depicting natural scenes. On the ground were several white, cardboard boxes filled with prints. Berwald's side was filled with tables and stands. On them were carved wooden pendants, sculptures, and even miniature replicas of Viking ships. Three tents over, Tino's mother sat among her many colorful paintings, humming and greeting customers.

Over the course of the three day festival, Berwald and Tino found that their wares sold quite well. A great number of customers, friends and strangers alike, came by and made purchases.

On the third day of the festival, a Sunday, things started to slow down. As a result, Berwald and Tino had more time to take breaks and even wander away from their tent. Lunch time was the quietest, as most of the remaining art fair goers were lined up in front of the many food stands. Tino's mother walked over to Tino and Berwald's tent with a turkey sandwich in hand and gestured towards a figure of a man in the distance.

"Tino, does your apartment complex allow dogs?" she asked.

"Well, yeah." Tino replied.

"That man over there is trying to adopt out a few puppies. You and Berwald should take a look if you have time."

Tino smiled and nodded. Since the death of their old family dog Glitter Warrior three years ago, neither Tino nor his parents had bothered to get a new pet. Tino certainly wasn't opposed to the idea of a new canine friend. He took Berwald by the hand and walked towards the man in the distance.

As Tino got closer, he noticed that there was a small wire pin at the man's feet. Rolling, hopping and stumbling about within its confines were a group of tiny white Maltese puppies. The man standing above them laughed loudly and waved. There was a McDonald's hamburger in his hand. A piece of lettuce fell out from between the buns, down a section of his blond hair and onto his glasses.

"Hey you guys. Interested in a puppy? Name's Alfred, by the way." his voice was as bright as his smile. The man took off his glasses and wiped away the piece of lettuce that had fallen seconds earlier.

"Yes," said Berwald as he knelt down next to the wire fence. He reached his arm over and began to stroke of the puppies with enthusiasm.

"We would." said Tino.

"That's good," the Alfred replied, "I can't afford to keep 'em."

"Really?" Tino asked.

"Yeah, really. I found these guys and their mother chillin' in the house I'm renting as soon as I moved in. The mother had to be put down because she had some weird leg infection. Apparently, the guy that lived there before me just left 'em when he moved. Who does that?"

"I don't see how anybody could leave these little guys behind. Look at how cute they are!" said Tino.

"Yeah," Alfred replied, "I don't get it, either."

Suddenly, Berwald stood up. He held one of the wriggling puppies against his broad chest. "This little girl seems th' friendl'st." he said.

Tino laughed at what had to be simultaneously the most comical and adorable thing that he had ever seen in his entire life. "Hand her to me." he said before Berwald plopped the white fluff ball into his arms.

The puppy flicked her little pink tongue out and reached up to lick Tino's face. She then let loose a tiny yip and rubbed her nose against Tino's blue hoody. Laughing, Tino said "I think she just might be the one."

Alfred reached over Tino's shoulder and stroked the puppy's head with two fingers. "Good choice! That one's pretty chill. Your buddy over there's right, she's a girl."

"I think we'll take her, but she needs a name." said Tino, "Berwald, do you have any ideas?"

"Nah,'s yer decision." the big man replied.

"Well then," said Tino, tapping his foot. "How about Cheese Castle?"

Berwald groaned.

"You're right, that was a bad one. Sardine Picnic?"

"No." replied Berwald.

"Dude, those are some weird names." said Alfred, shaking his head.

Tino sighed, Japanese names sounded cool to him, why not look back on his high school Japanese classes for inspiration? The first words that he could recall were "hana"; which meant flower, and "tamago"; which meant egg. "This is a good one for sure! How about, um, Hanatamago?"

"Odd, but c'te." at last, Tino had selected a name that Berwald was okay with.

Hanatamago, it seemed, was quite a natural edition to Berwald and Tino's little household. Like any puppy, she had a near infinite amount of springy energy and spent most of the evening playing keep away with any object that she could find lying around. It was almost like playing with a child: a furry, four legged child who insisted on sniffing everything. Berwald was just as excited as Tino about the new family member. He would pick her up off the floor and hold her with gentleness that was surprising to see in a man his size. Tino couldn't help but wonder how Berwald would look holding a baby. Maybe one day in the future they would be able to adopt.

When Hanatamago's energy was spent and she fell asleep balled up in her brand new bed, Tino began to feel his body grow heavy with exhaustion. He turned and looked at the black clock above the sofa. It was 9:30.

"I know it's still pretty early, but today really wore me out. I'm going to bed." Tino said. He then looked over at Berwald, whose mouth was wide open with a yawn.

"M' too." he said with a heavy voice.

It wasn't long before the couple found themselves nestled under the blue comforter of Tino's bed, holding onto each other and sleeping deeply.

_Soon after the summer months crept over the village, the rain seemed to stop altogether. The lake began to dry up, leaving parts of it full of nothing but scales of dry dirt. The rivers and streams were reduced from a great roar to a trickle. Deer became a rare site and those that stayed around soon dropped dead due to hunger or thirst. The worst part of the drought was the drying of the soil. Try as them may, Tino and his villagers could barely coax their crops to grow. There was only so much food left over from the winter stockpiles, and people's bodies became little more than bones. Not everyone survived. The youngest of Tino's sisters, Airi, succumbed to starvation just before the beginning of fall. In spite of the hardships, Tino did his best to provide for his family, and took more hunting trips than ever before. By the time snow and rain began to fall during the winter, the damage was already done. Nothing would grow in frozen soil._

_When the spring of the next year came, Tino wasn't sure how he had survived the winter. His once husky body had slimmed down to the point of gauntness. He hoped that Berwald would recognize him when he returned._

_At the beginning of the summer, when all of the ice and snow had melted into water and refilled the lakes and streams, Berwald came walking into the village holding the hand of a copper haired boy who looked to be about fourteen winters old. Tino was overjoyed to see him, and ran directly into Berwald's arms. _

_"Darling, you've returned!" Tino said, craning his neck upwards to steal a kiss._

_"Mmm. Ya feel smaller." Berwald said, stroking Tino's back._

_"The rains didn't come last summer." Tino replied, "But fear not, our crops are growing once more." _

_Berwald smiled, "M' glad." he then gestured to the boy at his side. "This 's Sven."_

_Sven scowled, "I can introduce myself, brother."_

_Tino laughed, "He's quite the strong willed one, I see."_

_Berwald nodded._

_"Man-wife, stop speaking of me as though I'm not here!" Sven said, jabbing Tino in the chest with a finger._

_"Tino threw up his arms in mock surrender, "Oh, I'm sorry to have ignored you. Welcome to my village, Sven."_

_The young boy gave Tino a wide, cheeky grin. _

_"Tino, you don't know h'w long 've waited for this day." Berwald whispered as he grasped Tino's forearms and leaned in for yet another kiss. _

_But their lips never met. _

_The defining roar of running feet and battle cries filled the air. Tino opened his eyes and saw a great mob of Berwald's men dashing towards the village, brandishing weapons. _

Tino woke with a jolt. The cotton of the bed covers was soaked in sweat, making Tino's skin feel clammy. He then noticed the feeling of Berwald's arm around him. The barbarian was still asleep.

"Wake up," Tino grunted, "and let go of me."

Berwald's eyes snapped open. The big man sat up and tried to lean in for a kiss, only to receive a stinging slap to the side of his face.

"Don't fucking touch me." Tino growled.

"What's th's all about?" asked Berwald, rubbing the reddening side of his face.

"You know what I'm talking about. How could you forget having your men raid my village?" Tino was almost shouting.

"You don' under..." but Berwald was cut off.

"Yes, I do." Tino said, "Get dressed, pack your things and leave. I want you gone by the time I come home from work. If I see you again, I'll call the cops on your ass."

"Tino, let m' explain." Berwald gripped Tino's hand, only to have him pull away.

"I'm not as stupid as you think I am. Get the fuck out." Tino pointed a stern finger at the door. "Pack, now."

"Tino..." Berwald tried to take his beloved's hand again and was once more unsuccessful.

"Go visit Lukas or something. Maybe he can seal you back into an amulet where you belong." Tino was now yelling from in front of the bathroom door. He looked down at the wooden ring on his finger and pulled it off. He then threw it at Berwald's head and slammed the bathroom door shut.


	17. The Gray Fog

Tino did his best to conceal his anger and sorrow at work, but it wasn't easy. Even though he loved photography, loved people and loved taking pictures of people, Tino's day was little more than a joyless gray haze. Every smile that he gave was forced, and when talking to children, he had to make his voice go up and down in an intonation that was so artificial it hurt his ears.

The worst moment of the day was when Elizabeta noticed.

"Tino, you aren't yourself today, what's wrong?" her green eyes were widened with worry.

"Oh, it's nothing!" Tino replied, wincing at his contrived tone, "I'm just tired is all."

That was when Elizabeta's gaze wandered to Tino's left hand. "Did you and Berwald have a fight?"

"Let's not talk about it." Tino said.

Elizabeta furrowed her brows, "It's okay, you can tell me about it."

Tino bit his lip until the inside of his mouth tasted metallic. "Just let me get back to work. This isn't professional."

Tino's return to his apartment was even worse. He didn't hear the usual sound of Berwald's heavy footsteps or feel the larger man's arms wrap around him. In fact, Tino was ashamed that he had enjoyed these things at one point.

Hanatamago seemed oblivious to the situation as she came bounding towards Tino. He knelt down to greet the puppy and scooped her wriggling body up into his arms.

"Looks like it's just you and me, girl." Tino said.

Hanatamago barked, the sound was too playful and sweet to fit the mood, and it echoed through a newly hollow place in Tino's brain. Happiness had left, and who knew how long it would be gone.

Tino then noticed a note of some sort lying on the kitchen table. He made his was over with long, automatic strides. He also tightened his grip on Hanatamago a bit. As Tino picked up the white piece of paper, he noticed that the handwriting scrawled on top of it belonged to Berwald. Tino didn't want to read what Berwald had to say, but found himself doing so anyways.

"Tino,

I'm sory about what happend, I would explain it all to you, but it's clear that you won't lisen. I can't stand seeing you hurt like this, so I left. I will always love you, and I'll never forgit you.

Goodbye,

Berwald"

Tino almost let himself think that the misspellings sprinkled throughout the note were cute, but then he remembered who wrote it and threw it onto the ground.

"Hana, I'm sleepy." Tino said. The dog, finally picking up on the fact that her master wasn't in the best emotional state, whimpered and nuzzled against his face. Tino looked at Hanatamago and gave her a tired smile. "I think I'll lie down on the couch. I've done too many disgusting things on the bed."

Tino soon found himself collapsing onto the old couch, still holding Hanatamago. He buried his face into her snowy fur and wept loudly. Then, with a tear stained face, his mind drifted into a deep sleep.

_ "No, st'p!" Berwald shouted, "This 's a TRADE MISSION, n't a raid!" but the ax wielding men didn't seem to hear him. Berwald turned to Tino and Sven, "Run away. I don' wan you gettin' hurt." _

_ "Sven, go into the forest." Tino said to the frightened red-head, who then ran off._

_ "Why aren't ya goin' with him?" Berwald asked Tino._

_ "It's my duty to help protect my people." Tino replied, "Don't try and stop me."_

_ Berwald smiled. "The spirit of a true warrior."_

_ It turned out that the rough band of men had one target and one target only, Pyry's home and land. Under the leadership of both Berwald and Tino, a band of loyal subjects of the elder fought valiantly and surrounded the white haired man with what could only be described as a human shield. The Vikings were outnumbered, and soon all fighting stopped._

_ "What h've ya done?" shouted Berwald at the Vikings, "These are our allies."_

_ It was then that Ivar stepped fourth and gripped Berwald's forearm. "Nephew, our family has lost many a fight and much of our land. We had expected you to join us in the conquest of this new land."_

_ "Uncle, ya never told me 'bout this. Why did ya lie to me?"_

_ "Someone told me that you have found a delicious little plaything here. I knew that if you had been told of the situation, that you would put an end to it before it began. Consider this a favor."_

_ Tino stomped over to Ivar, his hair flowing behind him like an angry flaxen flame. "I am not a plaything. You will find that when the rest of the villagers arrive, you will be overrun."_

_ "Don't be so sure of yourself, Tino." said a male voice. Taisto and a band of villagers larger than the one commanded by Berwald and Tino had arrived. _

_ "Taisto, you have finally arrived." Ivar said with an edge of irritation in his voice. _

_ "What is the m'ning o' this!" shouted Berwald._

_ Taisto's face split into a murderous grin. "Reform. Instead of having Old Pyry curse our land with drought once more, and I have enlisted Ivar's help in eliminating him."_

_ "Taisto, the villagers love the leader. You cannot get away with this." Tino said._

_ "Then why is my faction so much bigger than yours?" Taisto asked, gesturing to his men with one arm. _

_ Then there was a piercing shout of pain. All turned to look at Old Pyry, who had been stabbed in the chest by one of the villagers. "Taisto and the men from across the sea will protect us from all curses and evil." he shouted fanatically._

_ "Berwald," said Ivar, "You must take your position as owner of this land or be punished as a disgrace to our family. What do you choose?"_

_ Berwald inhaled. "M' desires are Tino's desires. I will not ta'ke this land."_

_ "Traitor" shouted a man somewhere in the crowd._

_ "You have made a poor choice. I truly believed that you would side with us." said Ivar, shaking his head. "Taisto, how do you propose we punish this man?"_

_ Taisto's grin grew wider. "I shall seal him away for many centuries. When he is freed, he will be lost, alone and nowhere near his beloved Tino."_

_ Then, a group of fifteen massive Vikings grabbed hold of Berwald and pulled him towards Taisto. Berwald struggled as hard as he could, but was unable to free himself._

_ "Don't touch him!" shouted Tino, raising his sword and charging. None of his other men moved: they were outnumbered and afraid._

_ Tino had always been a proficient fighter, so it didn't take him long to slash his way through several Vikings in order to get to Berwald. Before he could free his beloved, however, Tino felt a blunt blow to his head and his vision went dark. Someone had hit him._

_When Tino finally came to, he found himself tied to a tree, standing face to face with a puuko wielding Taisto._

Awakening from that particular nap was like bursting out from under ice. Tino's body was cold, but heated the moment he sat up. Like the waters of a Finnish lake, everything was clear: Tino knew how he and Berwald had lived and died.

Berwald!

Tino had banished the love of his life from his side without bothering to learn the whole story. Who knew where the Viking could have gone. Tino's worry became stronger when he noticed that there was no light coming through the window and Hanatamago was asleep. It was night time and Berwald was missing,

Tino pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. If he was lucky, Berwald had just taken shelter with Lukas. At least, he hoped that was the case. With shaking hands, Tino selected his friend's name from his list of contacts and hit call. Lukas answered after the first ring.

"Hello?" Lukas' mellow voice was unmistakable.

"Lukas, this is Tino. Is Berwald with you?"

"No. Why?"

Tino began to hyperventilate, "I kind of kicked him out this morning and now I can't find him."

"You what!?" shouted Lukas.

"Okay, look, I had this memory of an invasion of my village and thought that Berwald was behind it. I had another dream just minutes ago and now I know that it isn't the case at all. You've gotta help me find him."

Lukas let out a long, hissing sigh, "Tino, you can be such an idiot some times."

"I know." said Tino as he felt even more guilt wash over him.

"He could be over by my house. Get a flashlight and drive over."

It turned out that searching for someone in the blackness of a moonless night was more difficult than Tino had anticipated. The night's shadows seemed to have a way of swallowing whole people up, even if they were as big and tall as Berwald. Luckily, with the help of Lukas and a reluctant Emil, it couldn't be impossible could it?

After three hours of searching, Tino's throat began to feel numb from all the shouting of Berwald's name. Even though he only was able to see them when the light of the flashlight passed over them, Tino could tell that Emil and Lukas were just as exhausted as he was.

"We can't give up." said Tino, trying to encourage his companions as well as himself.

Lukas put a hand on Tino's drooping shoulder. "We aren't going home without Berwald." he said.

Emil, meanwhile, was skimming his flashlight along the bed of a creek. In an abrupt instant, he stopped moving his flashlight. "There's someone down there!"

Tino looked into the spot of light and saw a large, male looking figure. "Berwald!" he shouted as he ran towards the creek. Lukas and Emil weren't far behind.

Tino knew that the shadowy figure was indeed Berwald when he sat down next to him and shined his flashlight up and down his body.

"Berwald, I had another dream! I know the truth now. Oh, I'm so sorry! Are you okay?" all of Tino's word's escaped his mouth in rapid succession.

Berwald stroked Tino's cheek. "Fell 'bout an hour ago an' sprained m' ankle, I think. No one saw or heard me."

Lukas knelt down and examined Berwald's left ankle. "It's swollen really bad. He's probably right, it looks sprained."

"Thank God it isn't worse than that." Emil groaned.

Tino leaned in and kissed Berwald hard. He could feel himself crying, and it seemed that Berwald's cheeks were dotted with tears as well. "I'm so sorry, Ber. I shouldn't have doubted you. I know you didn't remember everything, but I should have trusted you with what you did remember." Tino then took Berwald by the left hand. "You're still wearing your ring."

Berwald chuckled, "'course I am. Still love ya."

"I don't deserve that." Tino replied.

"I und'rstand why ya got angry. S'okay, s' over now." Berwald wrapped his arms around Tino, who buried his face into his lover's chest and sobbed.

When all was calm once more, Lukas spoke, "Emil and Tino, help me pick Berwald up. We need to get that ankle checked out at a hospital."

The three men hoisted Berwald up and supported him with their shoulders.

"Looks l'ke it's Tino's turn t' to help me walk." said Berwald.

All Tino could do was smile.


	18. Epilogue

Six years had passed, and obviously, Berwald's sprained ankle had healed. His relationship with Tino had healed as well, in fact, it had grown stronger.

A testament to the strength of their relationship sat on the shelf above the fireplace in their new house. It was a silver framed photograph depicting Tino and Berwald. They were formally dressed and locked in a sweet kiss. Two years ago, same-sex marriage had become legal in the state of Kentucky, and the couple found themselves at the courthouse in their best suits only a week later.

Tino and Berwald were sitting on the living room sofa, which was directly across from the fireplace. Their hands were intertwined, and Tino was resting his head on one of Berwald's strong shoulders. Hanatamago, meanwhile, was lying in Tino's lap, enjoying the way he scratched her behind the ears.

The calm domestic scene was interrupted when the shrill sound of a baby crying drifted from the top floor of the house.

"Sounds like Peter's up." said Tino with a soft sigh.

Berwald rose from the couch, "I'll bring 'em down."

Soon, Berwald returned to the living room with the newly adopted addition the family cradled in his arms. Peter was still a newborn, and his hair was little more than blond peach fuzz. What hair he lacked on his head was more than made up for by his comically thick eyebrows.

"I can't get over how tiny he is." Tino said, taking the baby from his husband.

"He's a n'w baby, they all 'r tiny." Berwald said.

"Thank you for pointing that out." Tino said with a hint of good humored sarcasm in his voice.

Berwald just smiled, and Tino melted. He never would have guessed that everything would turn out so perfectly. He had Berwald, Hana, and now Peter, and nothing was better than that.

((Author's Note: That's it, this fanfic is officially over! I'm sorry if the ending seems a bit rushed. I'm most worried about how much sense Taisto's and Ivar's take over makes. Oh well, there is no such thing as a perfect piece of writing.

I must say that I never anticipated that this little story would be so well received. Thank you all. Thank you for the faves and comments on Deviantart and all 170 reviews on . It makes me so happy to see that people enjoy this fanfic!

In the future, I plan on writing more fanfics, SuFin and otherwise. I will do a better job of planning out my plots before I write so that they are more organized than this story.

Again, thank you so much for following me for the two years that it took to write this fanfic. You are all wonderful fans!

Love,

Uni))


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